Tomato Poetry
by JokertheMatrix
Summary: Gakuen AU. Lovino and his brothers have moved into town, and a certain Spanish teen has made it his life mission to befriend this troubled Italian through the use of tomato poetry. Rated T for Lovino's swearing and other sorts of language from others, although it's mildly used.
1. A Poet and His Tomato

**Hetalia isn't mine~**

* * *

><p>"Don't worry fratello; staying with Grandpa will be fun!"<p>

Lovino scowled as he continued to look outside the window. He decided to concentrate on the green fields they were passing by, determined to ignore his overexcited brother. He could picture his brother bouncing up and down on the seat next to Lovino, his eyes closed while wearing his trademark grin. His other brother and the youngest, Niccolo Vargas, was seated on the seat farthest away from him, his butterscotch-brown haired head bowed down and his green eyes glued to the screen of his phone.

_Probably texting some girl. _Lovino decided. He wondered how Niccolo could spend so much time flirting with girls, despite being the youngest. Sure he and Feliciano flirted a lot from time to time, but Niccolo seemed to be the best at it after having so much practice.

"Why do we even have to stay with him this summer? You know I hate going to that fu-"

"Lovino, language," his mother said sharply from where she was at the driver's seat. "And you know why we're doing this in the first place. Your father and I-"

Lovino snorted. "Yeah right, like you two can even agree in anything anymore," he said, cutting his mother off. He heard his mother take a sharp breath and his brother stop bouncing.

Silence filled the car with an unsettling aura. Lovino knew without looking that his mother's grip on the wheel tightened and that the dumb smile on his brother's face was wiped off to be replaced with a look of complete worry. Even Niccolo had stopped texting, suddenly alert at the tense situation.

"Lovino-" his mother started, her breath coming out short and even. She seemed like she wanted to say more, but no words left her mouth.

_Fine with me. _Lovino thought bitterly. _It's her fucking fault in the first place. _He continued to look out the window, the scenery suddenly becoming a blur to Lovino's eyes.

* * *

><p>"Feliciano! Lovino! Niccolo! How good it is to see you again!" His grandfather ran up to them and crushed them in a bear hug. Despite being past his prime, he still had a surprising amount of strength, so Lovino could barely breathe when their grandfather squeezed them.<p>

_Please, just kill me now. _Lovino thought, squeezing his eyes shut as he felt the oxygen leave his body. Just before Lovino's thoughts could come true, his grandfather let go of them. Gasping for breath, Lovino looked at the man they would be staying with for the year.

Not much had changed from him since Lovino last saw him when he was 5, other than the fact that there were a few wrinkles and gray hair here and there. His grandfather was still taller than Lovino, with hard muscles hidden under his tanned Mediterranean skin. He was wearing a brown shirt and loose white pants with a matching white cape, though why he was wearing a cape was lost on Lovino.

He stood over them, a twinkle in his amber eyes, wearing a goofy grin that Feliciano undoubtedly inherited from him. There was also no question that Lovino had inherited his dark brown hair from him, though Lovino's was a few shades lighter than his grandfather's hair. Niccolo was an odd case; he seemed to resemble Feliciano and Lovino, but not any of their predecessors. However, there was one thing that all boys seemed to inherit from their grandfather; all boys had strange curls sticking out of their hair, Lovino's to his right and Feliciano's to his left and Niccolo had a more angular one to his left as well, but they only had one as opposed to the three their grandfather sported.

"So, how are my three favorite grandchildren?" he asked, placing his hands on his knees and looking them in the eye.

Feliciano giggled. "We're your only grandchildren, Grandfather."

Their grandfather laughed, a deep resonating sound, and picked up Feliciano. "Then all the more love to the both of you!"

Lovino rolled his eyes. It was bad enough that they were moving to their grandfather's place for the rest of the year, but Lovino could do without the love-fest, thank you very much. "So which rooms are we staying in?"

Their grandfather placed Feliciano down and smiled. "You get to pick!"

"Romulus," Lovino's mother started hesitantly. "Thank you so much for this...It means a lot to us," she refused to meet any of their eyes.

"It's fine Catarina," Romulus's face was serious now. "I hope you and my son will resolve your...issues soon."

She nodded blankly then looked at her children. "I suppose I should go now... Remember to behave you three," she said, a small smile on her lips. "And remember that your father and I both love you."

"We love you too!" Feliciano gave his mother a hug, which seemed to make her more nervous instead of relaxed. After a while, Niccolo went up and hugged her too, though he seemed to be as nervous as her. Finally, she looked at Lovino, who only looked back at her and nodded. Sighing, she went back into their blue Ferrari and drove away.

"So," Romulus said, bringing all boys' attention to their grandfather. "I suppose it's time to pick your rooms!"

* * *

><p>Lovino set his luggage down near the foot of the mahogany bed. He had chosen his favorite room in the massive white mansion; a decent-sized, white room on the west side of the mansion with an alcove overlooking their grandfather's tomato garden. The room was bare save for a four-poster bed, a walk-in closet, the alcove, and a chest. Right across the hall was his brother's room, with Niccolo's room right next to Feliciano's. Both of them were probably with their grandfather, who had offered them a tour of their mansion as if this was their first time coming here (which, in Niccolo's case, was completely true), though Lovino had refused. He just wanted some time by himself.<p>

He lay down on the bed, not really feeling like unpacking his stuff quite yet. Lovino looked up at the ceiling, vaguely recalling the last time he and Feliciano were forced to stay with their grandfather.

_Didn't we wear dresses last time? _He thought, tracing circles above him. _No way Feliciano and I wore it on purpose... Didn't some kids who lived nearby force us into those clothes? What were their names again?_ He searched his mind for the names, but they seemed to be lost in memories. _Ah, fuck it; it's probably not that important in the first place._

He got up, and sat on the seats around the alcove and looked out the window. There, he saw row upon row of tomato stalks, each one ripe with their own plump, red tomatoes. It was a rather beautiful sight, almost as if one was looking at natural Christmas lights. Lovino could probably just sit there and stare at the tomatoes all day, but something caught his eye.

_It has to be my imagination..._ He thought as he rubbed his eyes. Tomato stalks couldn't move...right? But then the tomato stalks began to rustle again, in the same area as last time.

Lovino got up and sprinted down to the tomato garden, which seemed to take longer than he had expected (Why was his grandfather's mansion so damn big?). Once he reached roughly the spot where he saw the tomato stalks move, he looked wildly from side-to-side.

"Is anyone there?" Lovino called out, hoping with all his heart it wasn't an intruder. When there wasn't any answer, he sighed in relief.

_So it was my imagination after all... _He turned back to return to his room...and was met by a strange man.

"CHE DIAVOLO?*" Lovino screamed and jumped back, falling flat on his butt. "S-stay back! I-I have a...uh..." he looked at the first thing in sight. "I HAVE A TOMATO!" ...It probably wasn't the best threat, but Lovino didn't care much at this point.

"A tomato? Fusosososo, are you the tomato fairy then?" the other said in what was unmistakably a Spanish accent. He laughed in what was the strangest laugh Lovino has ever heard in his life.

Lovino looked up to see a smiling, olive-skinned teen wearing loose white clothes. He seemed to be only a few years older than him, though he smiled as if he was a small child, innocent and care-free. His curly, brown hair clung to his forehead, some of it covering his twinkling green eyes.

"W-who are you?" Lovino asked, completely bewildered at this guy's calm and happy exterior. The strange teen looked thoughtful for a moment then crouched down.

"I'm Antonio Hernandez Carriedo!" He grinned and stuck out his hand. "And you're the cutest fairy I've ever met in my life!"

_What the hell?_ Lovino felt the blood rush to his face. "I'm not cute! And what the hell are you doing here?"

"Mister Vargas lets me visit his tomato garden sometimes," he answered promptly, unperturbed at Lovino's rudeness. "And what's your name, Mister Tomato Fairy? I've never seen you in these gardens before... Am I blessed?"

Lovino just stared at him. _How stupid is he? _"I'm not a fairy, dammit! And I live here!" He paused. "Or at least, I'm going to live here!"

"Live here? Why?"

"Because 'Mister Vargas' is my grandfather and my parents-" Lovino cut himself short. Why did he have to explain himself to this complete stranger? "Bottom line is, I live here, so I have a right to be here."

Antonio didn't seem to notice Lovino's shortened explanation. "Really? That's great then! That means that we're going to be neighbors! We're going to be great friends!"

"You're crazy," Lovino shook his head and got up. He dusted his backside and started to walk away.

"Eh? Tomato Fairy, where are you going?" Lovino felt a hand grab his wrist and looked back to see a confused Antonio.

"What else am I doing? I'm going back inside," he tried to shake aside Antonio, but Antonio had too strong a grip on his hand. "Let go of me, dammit!"

"No," Lovino was shocked at Antonio's sudden seriousness. "Not until you tell me your name."

"Fine then!" Lovino was sick of this. All he wanted was for Antonio to go away. "It's Lovino Vargas! There, happy now?"

Antonio didn't answer. Instead, he let go of Lovino's wrist and plucked a tomato off the vine.

_Tomatoes are red_

_The sky is blue_

_Lovino Vargas, can I be best friends with you?_

Lovino gaped at Antonio. "Did you just recite a poem?"

"Yes! So, will you?"

"Like hell I would!" Lovino turned and started to walk back. _This turned out to be one hell of a crazy day..._ He thought, not even bothering to look back.

* * *

><p>Antonio watched the smaller teen walk away from him. He looked back at the tomato in his hand and then back to Lovino, a new fire to his eyes.<p>

_Whatever I do, I __**WILL **__be friends with you, Lovino Vargas! You can count on it!_

* * *

><p><strong>*Che diavolo- "What the hell" or at least, that's what it says on Google Translate, so please correct me if I'm wrong!<strong>

**So, how'd you like part 1? I hope it wasn't too bad. I apologize in advance for my amateurish poem-making skills XD**


	2. With a Family Like This

**Silly me, I forgot to say that Niccolo Vargas is my human name for Seborga. By the way, apparently Seborga adds an "-a" to some of his words. I'm not used to it, but I'll try to make it sound natural. Hope you guys like the next part!**

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><p>"Antonio Hernandez Carriedo? What about him?"<p>

Lovino scowled, setting his fork down next to his plate of pasta and gripped his spoon tightly. They were seated around a magnificent dining table, eating pasta as grand as their grandfather's mansion (Lovino wasn't surprised; it had been Feliciano's turn to cook, and he was exceptional at it).

"Whenever I go to the tomato gardens, he's always there! It's annoying as hell!" A few days had passed since the day Antonio recited a poem to him, and each time Lovino went down to the tomato gardens, he would always encounter the eccentric Spanish teen. He didn't say another poem, but he was still weird. "I swear, he must be a fucking stalker or something…"

Romulus chuckled. "Lovino, I pay him to take care of the tomato gardens- I can't tell him to get off my gardens, I need him too much. When you're my age, it gets harder to do those kinds of things; I'm not as strong as I used to be, you know."

"I figured out as much, but how come he always seems to come at the exact time I do? I doubt you pay him to take care of the tomatoes the whole day."

"I told big brother Antonio your favorite times to come down to the gardens!" Feliciano piped up. "I was so happy that fratello* was making new friends, so when I saw him in the gardens and he asked when you were coming, I told him that you usually come down right after your siesta!"

"What the hell did you do that for, idiota? I don't want him anywhere near me!" Even though he was mad, Lovino couldn't take out all of his rage on Feliciano. He suspected that that was what happened, so it came to be no surprise when Feliciano said it out loud. It still didn't stop Lovino from being mad. "He's always going 'Let's be friends, Lovi!' and all that crap!"

"'Lovi'?" Niccolo stopped eating and looked at him, face alight with laughter. "What is that, your nickname? Can I call you that-a too?"

"Ve~ can I call you that too, fratello? It's really cute!"

"Hell no! I don't even like it when he says it!" Lovino forgot when exactly Antonio started doing it, but he had spontaneously decided one day to call Lovino 'Lovi'; what made things even more embarrassing was that he made a point to call him 'Lovi' at any and all chances he got, much to Lovino's chagrin. Lovino hated nicknames of all kinds- there's a reason why parents named their children that way, and they should be called by such instead of some butchered, short version of it. That, and 'Lovi' made Lovino sound like a little child.

"I don't know why you're making such a fuss about it," Romulus said calmly, continuing to eat. "'Lovi' is such a cute nickname- perfect for my cute little grandson!"

"That's not the point! Point is, I don't want to be friends with that guy!"

"I thought the point was that you kept-a meeting up with him in the gardens," Niccolo said, a confused look on his face.

"That too!"

"Well, if you're so intent on ignoring him, then why don't you just vary the times you go down to the gardens," Romulus shrugged. "That way, there's a smaller chance of you meeting up with him."

Lovino blinked. He didn't really want to go to the gardens at any other time (after all, a quick stroll through the tomato gardens was refreshing after a siesta), but desperate times called for desperate measures. "Thank you, nonno*. I really-"

Romulus raised his hand. "Honestly though, I don't see why you are so against Antonio being friends with you. He's such a nice young man; I'd gladly give him my blessing into befriending you."

"You make it sound like he's proposing to me."

"I wouldn't mind that either," there was a twinkle in Romulus's eye. "Ah, I've never tried going for a male before- it's one of the things I regret having never done. Be sure to tell me what it's like, Lovino, I'm sure it will be a wonderful experience for you~"

"You're crazy! Why would I date a guy I barely know?"

"Ah, but you didn't reject the idea of dating him. He's not that bad-looking, you know. And he seems like the type that can handle your quick change in mood. I'm sure he'd be the perfect one for you~"

Lovino gaped. "You're kidding, right?" He looked at his brothers. "You don't think that what he's saying is true, do you?"

Niccolo shrugged. "Gender doesn't matter. As long as you-a love a person, gender shouldn't matter. Although, I like-a girls better, but that's-a my opinion."

"I wouldn't mind at all," Feliciano smiled. "Big brother Antonio seems fun, and fratello doesn't seem to mind him as much, so it's fine!"

"See," Romulus placed his head on his hands. "Your brothers agree with me, so why don't you give him a chance?"

Lovino was blue with shock. "I've had enough of this," he pushed his chair back abruptly and left the room.

* * *

><p><em>Now why<em>, Lovino thought as he sat on the doorstep, leaning back while using his hands to prop himself up. _Did I decide to go to the gardens __**RIGHT **__after I complained about it?_

Lovino sighed. The conversation didn't turn out like he wanted; he probably should have expected this, but he was going on the impossible hope that his family would be on his side. Call him crazy, but they all seemed up for Lovino be friends with Antonio- hell, his grandfather practically stated outright that he'd like them to date!

_What makes them think that we're compatible? He's annoying, he smiles _way _too much, and he seems like an idiot. Plus, we don't exactly have "friendly meetings" whenever we see each other. _He looked down and kicked a pebble._ It doesn't matter anyways. Antonio's not here to bug me, so that means that I can _finally_ get my peace and quiet in my favorite place._

Lovino sat up, watching the tomato stalks sway to the gentle wind while listening to the sounds of the insects. It was a rather pretty sight, especially since twilight was coming. Lovino laid his head on the door and closed his eyes, humming a tune under his breath in contentment.

_Swish~!_

Lovino opened his eyes. When he didn't hear the sound again, he laid his head back again, but with a wary feel to it.

_Swish~!_

"Okay, who the fuck is there?" Lovino stood up and looked from side-to-side. "I have a spoon, and I'm not afraid to use it!" Lovino didn't know how he could have brought the spoon out here, but he didn't care; depending on how you used it, a spoon could be a deadly weapon.

_Swish~!_ Lovino saw the tomato stalks in front of him sway. Terror flooded his body.

"S-stay back! D-don't make me spoon you!"

"Fusososo, I wouldn't mind Lovi spooning me ~" the tomato stalks parted to reveal Antonio, who was wearing a red-checkered flannel shirt, jeans, and that annoying smile of his.

Lovino went red at Antonio's statement. "That's not what I meant, bastardo! What the fuck are you doing here this late? You scared the shit out of me!"

"Lo siento* Lovi, I only wanted to see you."

"Do you have any idea how late it is? Who the fucking hell in his right mind would come this late? AND DON'T CALL ME 'LOVI'!" Lovino screamed, the blood rushing to his face.

"But it's so cute! Just like you, Lovi!" Antonio smiled and went forward to poke his cheek. "Especially when you're as red as this- you look like a little tomato!"

"Don't touch me!" Lovino smacked Antonio's hand off. "Can you just leave? I'm not in the mood to put up with you."

"Huh? What's wrong, Lovi? Is there something I can do to help you?" Antonio looked at him with concern.

"You can help me by leaving," Lovino sat down and sighed. "Look, it doesn't even have anything to do with you," a complete lie, since Lovino was still pissed at how his family seemed to encourage Antonio's friendship-advances. "So I don't need your help."

"It doesn't matter if it has anything to do with me," Antonio squatted down and looked him in the eye. "I don't want to see my Lovi upset."

Lovino turned red and broke eye contact with Antonio. His mind thought back to his conversation with his grandfather. "D-don't say crap like that! I barely even know you; you have no right to say those kinds of things! And I don't belong to anyone, especially not to an idiot like you. So can you just leave already?"

Antonio didn't say anything for a while. The _swishing_ of the tomato stalks was in sync with the gentle voice of the wind. Lovino turned even redder (if that was possible) at the silence. Finally, Antonio stood up.

_Finally, _Lovino thought as he watched Antonio walk away._ I thought he would never- what the fuck is he doing?_

He stared as Antonio plucked two tomatoes off the vine. Antonio turned back and squatted in front of Lovino and showed him the tomatoes.

"What are you-"Lovino started, but was interrupted by Antonio's voice.

_Mistaken as one_

_But actually the other_

_A vegetable, no, don't be dumb!_

_For it is a fruit; isn't that a bother?_

_No, I say!_

_A sun-sweet berry_

_Why, I'd eat it any day_

_For it makes anyone merry!_

_So get rid of your woes_

_And join me, dear friend, don't be depressed!_

_Because tomatoes-_

_Are the very best!_

Antonio finished, and held up the other tomato to Lovino. "So, why don't you join me Lovino? Tomatoes always cheer me up- it might work for you too."

Damn.

This was a new low, even for Antonio.

How dare he use his favorite fruit against him!

"Fine," Lovino took the tomato with a red face. "But that doesn't make us friends, bastard, I just like tomatoes."

"Si?* I'll make sure to remember that," Antonio smiled and took another bite off the tomato and moved so that he was sitting next to Lovino. "How come this doesn't make us friends? We both like tomatoes."

"Idiot," Lovino scoffed. "Just because we like the same fruit doesn't mean we're friends. We'd have to have a lot more in common to be friends- plus, we actually have to LIKE each other."

"Well, that one's easy; I already like you Lovi!" Antonio beamed at him. "As for the things in common, all I have to do is find out what Lovi likes!"

"Hell if I'm telling you what I like," Lovino took a bite out of his tomato.

"Don't worry," Antonio continued to grin at him. "I'll figure out how to make Lovi open up to me, you'll see."

"You're really weird, you know."

Antonio laughed and then laid his head on Lovino's shoulder.

"What the hell are you doing? Get off me!"

"No. I like being on Lovi." His tone implied that nothing Lovino could do could get him off him.

"Idiot…" they fell silent as they both ate their tomatoes, watching the tomato stalks sway at the persistent, gentle wind.

* * *

><p><strong>How was it? Lovi swore a lot more in this one than the last one (oh well, that's Lovi XD). Any foreign words found here were from Google Translate, so please correct me if I'm wrong! Other words are pretty self-explanatory, so I'm not placing them down.<strong>

*fratello (Italian) – Brother, this one was on the first one as well

*nonno (Italian) - Grandfather

*Lo siento (Spanish) – Sorry

*Si (Spanish) - Yes


	3. Just My Luck

**This is where the school part of the AU begins XD**

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><p>"Ve~ Fratello, you look cool in your outfit!"<p>

"Kill me now," Lovino looked in disgust at his school uniform. He was wearing a tan sweater vest edged with black with blue plaid pants and black shoes. The edges of his white dress shirt were visible from the bottom of his vest and his sleeves were rolled halfway up his arms. The school's crest, _World Academy W_, was on the right side of his vest. Lovino wished that he didn't have to go to school; they didn't have to for the first few days since they were new, but they could only put it off for so long. What made it worse was that World Academy was the only school in town, so they had no choice BUT to go to the unusual school. "These clothes are way too plain."

"I don't see why you don't like it; you're almost matching with Feliciano!" his grandfather smiled and patted Feliciano's head.

"Our uniforms look nothing alike," Lovino pointed out dryly. Feliciano was wearing a dark brown sweater over his shirt and tie, blue plaid pants, and black shoes. The World Academy crest was also visible on the right side of his sweater.

"You two still look cute though! Ah, I still remember how my school uniform looked; your grandmother loved to see me in it. Why she even-"

Lovino sighed as his grandfather went on about his youth, his mind still on the matching-with-Feliciano comment. He wished he could be like Niccolo, who wasn't regularly showered with comparisons to Feliciano. At least he got his peace and quiet.

Speaking of Niccolo…

"So are there going to be any-a girls there?" Niccolo walked in the living room, holding the World Academy brochure. He was wearing a mixture of Lovino's and Feliciano's uniforms; a dark brown sweater vest with the school crest on it and blue plaid pants with black shoes, although his sleeves weren't rolled up. "I looked it-a up on the Internet, and most-a people say that there are barely any girls there! It is outrageous!"

"Don't worry Niccolo, there ARE girls there," Romulus smiled at his youngest grandchild. Niccolo visibly relaxed at his grandfather's answer. "Just not as much as the boys. By a lot." Lovino was positive Niccolo hadn't heard his grandfather's last words, because he barely heard it himself. He was wrong.

Niccolo turned ashen. "What did you sa-"

Romulus cleared his throat. "Now that you're all in your uniforms, I suppose we should get going!"

* * *

><p>According to the brochure, World Academy had started as a government project a few years back. Lovino had skipped most of the text, but it was basically an international project to see how students from different nations would interact. The school selected one student from each nation to represent said nation- it was a tricky process, seeing as how they were looking for the student that bests "represent" their nation. This led to there being as many students as there were countries, so there were far less students at World Academy than other schools, although the list of "countries" included micronations, supernational states like the Holy Roman Empire, and ones that weren't even independent countries to begin with, like Hong Kong. By selecting students that were most like their "country", the government was hoping that it would help them understand the motives of other countries and thus be closer to world peace. Lovino failed to see how this would help with world peace, since no person could "represent" a country, but it was the only school they could go to, so they had to go.<p>

Somehow, his grandfather had managed to get both Lovino and Feliciano as the Italian representatives, saying that there was a North and South Italy, with Feliciano representing North Italy and Lovino representing South Italy since they were born at roughly those areas. Oddly enough, they accepted Niccolo without a question since he was born in the Principality of Seborga (his birth was a long story that included a car trip, a cat, pasta, and their grandfather's watch). What the brochure didn't mention was that…

"This place is HUGE!" Niccolo exclaimed as Romulus drove through the school's driveway.

_No kidding. _The driveway itself seemed to be about the length of an airplane runway. Shrubberies and trees surrounded both sides of the black, asphalt driveway. Through the trees, Lovino could see a large football field on his right and a square, white building on his left. Lovino was shocked to see that a school that only had about two hundred students needed so much space. Sure it was a private school, but private schools probably didn't need to take up about a quarter of the town's space.

They continued to approach a magnificent, reddish-tan, low building with arched windows and a clock tower in the middle; it was a building fit to be a castle. Behind the European-like building was what looked like the fanciest greenhouse he's ever seen, although it was hard to see from the angle they were coming at.

When they stopped in front of the building, Lovino realized that in the middle of it was an area the size of their grandfather's mansion. There were two rectangular strips of vivid green grass- one bigger than the other- separated by concrete sidewalks; it looked like a good place to eat lunch during the summer. The edges surrounding the land were the rest of the building, making the building a rectangle around empty space, like the edges of a shoe box.

"So what do you think of the school?" Romulus grinned after they stepped out of the car, all of them wearing an awed expression as each tried to take in the sheer size of their new school.

"It's wonderful, grandfather!" Feliciano looked like he was itching to look around the new school. "Thank you!"

Romulus chuckled. "I only choose the best for my grandchildren! Not to mention, the people here are nice; I'm sure you will meet plenty of nice people here," he winked at Lovino, which made him roll his eyes. He hadn't told him about what happened yesterday between him and Antonio, but he had a funny feeling that his nonno already knew.

Speaking of Antonio…

Lovino didn't want to see Antonio again. After the embarrassing events of last night, he **really** didn't want to see him again. He couldn't believe that he had fallen for his trick. Maybe it was because of the tomatoes or maybe it was because of the poetry, he didn't care; he had gone soft on Antonio, and that was unacceptable.

So right now, he was going on the hope that Antonio was homeschooled.

* * *

><p>Lovino scowled as he and his brothers waited for their guides outside the principal's office. They had just received their schedules and had been told that they were going to have student guides to help them adjust. Each teen were apparently getting a guide in the same "group" as them, so Niccolo would be getting a guide from the Micronation Group while Lovino and Feliciano would be getting guides from the Europe Group. Since the limited number of students made division by age practically impossible, the classes were sorted by geography, with the resulting class called "Groups"; since Lovino and Feliciano were both representing Italy, they were going to be sharing classes together despite Lovino being older. Oddly enough, Niccolo didn't have any classes with them despite Seborga being in Italy and had been grouped with other kids from micronations.<p>

Lovino looked around, suddenly wishing his grandfather had stayed with them; as much as he hated to admit it, he was scared. He barely managed to fit in his last school, how in the world would he fit in in this one? Unlike Feliciano, who was ridiculously popular, Lovino only managed to have a few friends, and even then they weren't that close. He wondered why he usually had fewer friends than Feliciano. It wasn't because he wasn't nice; he was plenty nice! He just had a hard time showing it, dammit!

Lovino sighed. He was going crazy waiting. The sooner those guides came, the better.

"Ve~ who do you think you'll get as your guide, Lovino? I hope mine will be nice…Maybe they'll like pasta!" Feliciano smiled at him, although Lovino could tell he was anxious as well by the almost nonexistent strain in his smile.

Lovino scoffed. "Of course they'll like pasta. NOBODY dislikes pasta," he almost smiled as well, but his thoughts prevented him from doing so. Nevertheless, Feliciano seemed to be relieved at the answer and happily started to hum under his breath.

"I wish mine would be a pretty girl…That would be-a perfect!" Niccolo sighed as he leaned against the wall.

"Good luck with that," Lovino commented, thinking back to what Romulus had said earlier.

"What do you mean by tha-"

"Are you the new students?"

All three brothers turned to see a short, blonde haired boy wearing a navy blue sweater edged with black, plaid pants, and a matching sailor hat run toward them. The boy skidded into a stop in front of them.

"Hi! I'm Peter Kirkland from the great Sealand! Don't confuse me with my older brother, he's a jerk!" Peter stuck a hand out, his blue eyes under thick eyebrows lit up with delight. "I'm going to be the guide for…uh…"

"Niccolo Vargas," an even shorter girl with brown eyes and brown hair tied in a ponytail walked calmly to Peter's side. She was wearing a red, plaid skirt jumper with a short-sleeved white shirt and a black tie and black Mary Jane shoes. "I'm Kiah Brown from the Principality of Wy," she glared at Peter. "Both me and Peter are going to be Niccolo's guides."

"Yeah!" Peter didn't seem to be fazed by what Kiah said. "So who's Niccolo?"

"I am," Niccolo stepped off the wall and shook Peter's hand. He turned to Kiah and studied her.

"Such a cute little girl," Niccolo smiled and patted Kiah's head. "If only you were-a older…I suppose I'll just-a make a pass at you then."

"Excuse me?"

"Are any of you 'Feliciano Vargas'?" A teen taller than any of them suddenly appeared. He had blond hair slick back and serious, light blue eyes behind glasses. He wore a buttoned, deep blue blazer with blue plaid pants and was carrying a tan sling bag. Only a small part of his tan, sweater vest and white shirt and tie were visible. "My name is Ludwig; I'm the representative for Germany," he spoke with a deep, no- nonsense voice. "I'm supposed to be the guide for Feliciano."

"I'm Feliciano!" Feliciano raised his arm. "Ve~! You're tall!" He stepped closer and poked Ludwig's arm. "Wow! You're really strong too! Do you like pasta?"

"Do I-? Wait, what?" Ludwig seemed completely flustered at Feliciano's sudden comments. Lovino glared at him.

"Well do you?"

"I-I suppose…" he answered half-heartedly, not exactly sure what was going on.

"Really?" Feliciano jumped up and down in delight. "You seem nice…I like you!"

"What?"

"I don't," Lovino crossed his arms and continued to glare at the German. He really didn't have any reason to hate him, but he was being too close to his idiotic brother.

Meanwhile, Ludwig looked completely lost. He just stood there awkwardly as Feliciano continued to chatter about pasta, why it was brilliant, and how he would love some right now. Meanwhile, Niccolo was listening patiently as Peter started telling him about something while Kiah watched them in disapproval and interest.

_When is my guide going to come?_ Lovino wanted to get away from here as soon as possible. Both his brothers had guides and he didn't, which irked him; he hated being left out. _N-not that I care or anything… I'm perfectly fine being alone…_

He slumped lower down the wall, contemplating on whether or not he should just fall asleep. _It beats going to class…Or watching my brother make a fool of himself._ He closed his eyes, wishing that sleep would come. Just then, a voice called his name.

"Lovi!"

_Shit._

_ Out of __**all**__ the people they could have picked to represent Spain, they just had to choose __**him**_.

Lovino snapped his eyes open to see a familiar figure run towards him. He was wearing a lopsided navy blue sweater, a white dress shirt with a black tie, and blue plaid pants. He stopped in front of Lovino and bent down. "Lo siento, I had forgotten where the office was. Anyways…" He started to pull something out of his brown sling bag.

_Please don't say you're my guide; please don't say you're my guide; PLEASE JUST BE PASSING BY-!_

He held up a piece of paper in front of Lovino, which made his blood run cold.

_Hey Lovino!_

_I'm going to be your guide!_

_Isn't that the best? Plus, we're going to_

_Be sharing a lot of classes since Spain is close to Italy! I'm so_

_Excited to be your guide; I'm going to show you around everywhere!_

_Oh! And maybe I'll introduce you to my friends; they're really_

_Nice and I'm sure you're going to like them! Anyways,_

_Aren't you happy that I'm_

_Your guide?_

"We're going to have so much fun Lovi~" Antonio beamed at him.

_Just kill me now…_ Lovino closed his eyes and slumped all the way to the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>Like you guys weren't expecting this (Or that Germany would be Italy's guide) :D<strong>

**Anyways, the poem was _supposed_ to be in the shape of a tomato, but a circle/diamond is the closest I could get (I sincerely apologize for my failed concrete poem). I just looked up Australian names when picking a human name for Wy, so I just picked the ones I liked/made sense to me.**


	4. I Don't Belong to Antonio!

_This can't be a coincidence…There are like, what, around 200 students to choose from; how in the world did I end up with __**this **__one?_

Lovino wasn't even listening to Antonio chattering next to him. All he could think about was how lu- _un_lucky he was to have _him_ as his guide; it was like some unseen force was working against him and was purposely setting him up with Antonio. _Or I just have the worst luck in the world. _He thought, his face grim.

He sighed as he continued to follow behind Antonio through the massive hallways of World Academy W; Ludwig and Feliciano had gone ahead of them since it had taken a while to convince Lovino to follow Antonio, leaving Lovino alone with Antonio once they did start walking. Lovino didn't even bother to pay attention to where they were going; he had a feeling that even when Antonio stopped being his guide, he'd still be stuck with him. So, he just tried to make the best of things by sticking with Antonio…for now.

Antonio stopped suddenly, making Lovino run into him. He took a step back. "What the hell did you that for, idiota?" he asked indignantly.

Antonio looked back at him. "We're here!" He pointed to the door next to him, which was clearly marked "Europe Group 1". "The Europe Group is divided into two subdivisions; Europe Group 1 and Europe Group 2. Europe Group 1 is the biggest class in the whole school, so stick right next to me so that you don't get lost."

"What the fuck do you think I am, a kindergartener?" Lovino snarled, but Antonio didn't seem to have heard him. He was looking through the window on the door.

"Good, the place is barely filled up…" Antonio murmured to himself. He turned back to Lovino. "Do you want to go in now? We could look around the school some more until class starts."

"I'd rather just stay in the classroom." That way, he wouldn't be stuck alone with Antonio anymore.

"Alright then," Antonio nodded and opened the door.

_He calls this _"barely filled up"_?_ Lovino thought as they stepped inside. He could count around 12, 13 people milling around the classroom. _I'd hate to see this class when it _is _full…_

The classroom itself was about average, save for the fact that it was twice the size of a normal classroom. The classroom was painted a nice fawn brown under the many maps hung around the room. A large blackboard stood behind a large brown countertop at the front of the classroom, presumably the teacher's desk. Two large windows were at the right side of the blackboard, giving a nice view of the field of grass Lovino had seen earlier when he and his family were driving to school. Desks and chairs were strewn everywhere, making it hard to tell whether it was an organized mess or a series of messy clusters.

"Europe Group 2 is filled with the Nordic, Slavic, and Baltic representatives; Europe Group 1 is filled with the rest," Antonio explained. "Like Elizabeta Hedervary from Hungary and Roderich Edelstein from Austria," he pointed to a green-eyed girl with dark brown hair wearing a bigger version of Kiah's uniform and a glasses-wearing, violet-eyed boy with wavy brown hair and a wild strand of hair wearing a dark blue blazer and blue plaid pants. They were both talking to Feliciano and Ludwig, with the girl patting Feliciano's head affectionately.

_His first day of school and my idiot brother is _already _popular,_ Lovino thought bitterly as Antonio continued to name people. He wondered how his brother could be so friendly and nice all the time. _Maybe it's because he smiles all the time…I mean, I smile, but not as much…Or never. _Lovino shook his head and averted his attention back to Antonio.

"…And then there's Arthur Kirkland from England and Alfred F. Jones from the U.S.," Antonio pointed to two blondes, one wearing a blue blazer over a tan sweater vest and white shirt and plaid pants, the other wearing the exact same clothes as the first except with a bomber jacket instead of a vest. The one wearing the bomber jacket had bright cerulean eyes behind his glasses and short, dusty blonde hair with a wild curl sticking up; the one wearing the blazer had messy, short blonde hair, emerald green eyes, and unbelievably thick eyebrows.

"Be careful of Arthur; he's the Student Council President, and he can be a bit of a handful," Antonio's eyes darkened for a millisecond when he pointed to the teen wearing the blazer, but it cleared up so fast that Lovino couldn't tell whether it actually happened or not. "I don't think you need to worry about Alfred; he has good taste in tomatoes."

"I didn't need to know any of that. And the United States is in North America, idiot, not Europe," Lovino said sarcastically; maybe Antonio was more stupid than he thought. Antonio just laughed.

"I know, but he likes to visit his boyfriend a lot, so the U.S. might as well be in Europe," Antonio sounded a bit sour for a reason, but Lovino didn't care enough to find out why.

"Those two are _dating?"_ With the way they were arguing, Lovino was surprised they could even be friends; it looked like it was the American's life mission to annoy the living hell out of the Briton.

"Yeah, that's apparently Arthur's 'softer side'. If you _really_ want to see someone Arthur fights with, my friend Francis would be the perfect one," Antonio looked thoughtful for a moment. "Speaking of Francis, you should go meet him! You should meet Gilbert too, he's nice as well! I'm _positive_ that you'll like them! Wait here, I'll go get them!" Before Lovino could say anything, Antonio bolted out the door. _What the hell just happened?_ Lovino thought, stunned at how fast the conversation went. He sighed (he seemed to be doing that a lot wherever Antonio is concerned) and looked around for a place to set his stuff.

"In a way, I kind of feel bad for you," Lovino looked to his left to see a teen with shaggy, strawberry- blonde hair with a small, pearl-like earring on his left ear leaning on a wall. He was wearing a tan sweater vest over a white polo shirt and the standard plaid pants. What startled Lovino the most about his appearance was that he had red eyes and a small fang on the left side of his mouth. "I mean, he's not that bad a guy by himself, but when he's with the rest of the trio…"

"What are you tal-"

"So this is the kid you were talking about, Antonio!" Lovino looked behind him to see a grinning, red-eyed albino wearing an iron cross necklace leaning on the doorway. Unlike the rest of the students, he was wearing a casual, red jacket over a black shirt and black-and-red plaid pants as opposed to the school's blue ones. Lovino was surprised to see a small, fluffy, yellow chick on his shoulder. "Kesese, he's kind of cute!"

"True, he is _tres magnifique*." _At the opposite side of the doorway was a teen with wavy, shoulder-length blonde hair with blue eyes and a slight amount of facial hair in his chin. He was wearing the standard blue blazer with a slightly unbuttoned white dress shirt and the standard plaid pants. He was holding a red rose to his mouth, effectively creeping out Lovino.

"Back off you two, Lovino's mine," Antonio appeared in between them; Lovino was surprised to see a slightly possessive and intensely irritated expression on his face. He turned to Lovino, his features reverting back to the familiar smile. "Anyways, these are my friends Lovi! This is Francis Bonnefoy, the representative of France," he gestured to the rose-holding teen, "And Gilbert Beilschmidt, the representative of Prussia," he gestured to the albino.

"What's Prussia?" Lovino was pretty sure that "Prussia" did not appear in a normal European map. "What is that, German?"

"Close; Prussia _used_ to be a nation," Antonio looked unsure. "I suppose it is German, since Gilbert's Ludwig's brother."

"He's related to that potato bastard?" Lovino frowned. _Great, another German I have to worry about._ He already had to worry about the first one getting too close to his brother, now he had to worry about this one getting too close to _him._ "And if Prussia's not a nation anymore, how is he Prussian?"

"Hey, don't speak badly of West; he's pretty awesome, but not as awesome as me!" Gilbert's grin widened. "As for how I'm Prussian, it's because I'm awesome like that."

Lovino was starting to think less of Antonio's friends; they both seemed as crazy as Antonio himself. "That doesn't answer my question bastardo."

"Quite a mouth on him," Francis _tutted_ as if in disapproval. "But he is as cute as you make him out to be, Antonio. Are you sure that I can't have him?"

"How many times do I have to tell you, Francis? _No,_" Antonio was still smiling, but it seemed more dangerous now instead of care-free. "Unless of course, you are willing to fight for him."

"_Mon cher*_, you need not to be so aggressive about this," Francis chuckled. "I respect your claim, so Lovino is all yours. However, if he tires of you, he can always come to me~"

Lovino shivered, already beyond creeped out. Then he realized what Francis had said. "What the fuck are you talking about? I don't belong to anyone!"

"So he's up for the taking?" Gilbert smirked. "I call him!"

"Do I have to tell you too, Gilbert? _Lovino is mine,_" Antonio seemed downright terrifying at the moment. Lovino gulped and tried not to show how scared he was. He was pretty sure he failed.

"W-will you guys stop it?" Lovino hated how his voice quavered a little. "This is ridiculous!"

"I'm sorry, Lovino," Antonio's smile returned. "We won't fight anymore, _si?"_ He glared at the other two. Gilbert shrugged.

"I still claim him if he's free."

Francis interrupted Antonio before he could say something. "Ohonhon, you are wasting your time, Gilbert, we all know who Lovino belongs too," Antonio looked relieved. "That would obviously be the splendid me~"

"I think I need to talk to you guys about this," Antonio's voice was dangerously calm. Lovino wondered how he could switch personalities so fast. "Lovino is mine, period."

"I don't belong to any of you!" Lovino felt frustrated. They were talking about him as if he were an object! "_Especially _not to Antonio! So can you guys just stop and shut the fuck up already? You're driving me crazy!"

"What is going on?" Antonio moved aside to reveal a small, brown-haired man wearing something akin to a business suit. He looked tired and weary. "Such foul language is not permitted in my classroom. So," he looked at Lovino. "As punishment, you must clean the classroom after school. No exceptions."

"_What?_ I didn't even do anything!"

"No exceptions," the teacher repeated sternly before walking over to his desk.

"Sir?" he turned around when Antonio called him. "I volunteer to accompany the student in his punishment as well; I _am_ his guide. Whatever punishment he receives, I receive as well."

The teacher considered the thought. "Very well, Carriedo, you may."

_Fuck._ Lovino thought as he saw Antonio grin triumphantly to his friends, who returned it with one of their own. _It's official; I _hate _Antonio's friends._

* * *

><p>Lovino bolted out the classroom with his lunch the minute the lunch bell rang. He didn't want to be anywhere near Antonio and his friends after what happened this morning. Luckily, the class was divided by age, so Antonio and his idiot friends weren't seated next to him. However, he knew that Antonio would seek him out once class ended, so he had to hide quickly. He looked around; where was the best place to hide in such a huge school?<p>

"Need help?" Lovino whirled to see the same boy who had spoken to him before standing behind him. "Relax; I know the best place to hide if you need to get away from that boyfriend of yours."

"He's not my boyfriend!" Lovino snapped, turning beet red. The other teen shrugged.

"Calm down, I just assumed you two were dating since you guys are kind of like Arthur and Alfred," he shrugged. "So do you need my help or what? Careful, it's a one-time offer~"

Lovino nodded. He didn't care _how_ he got away from Antonio, just that he _did._ "Who are you anyways?" he asked as the other teen started to walk.

"Nicolae Vladimirescu, at your service," he looked back at Lovino and grinned, the fang in his teeth showing. "I'm the representative of Romania…or Rumania, depending on how you want to say it. So who are you, new kid? I'm curious to know the name of Antonio's new pet."

"Lovino Vargas, the representative of South Italy," Lovino started to follow him. "And I'm not his 'pet'."

"Suit yourself, Lovino." He turned back, but Lovino was willing to bet his grandfather's tomato garden that he was still smiling.

* * *

><p>"You're hiding me…<em>In the magic club?"<em> Lovino asked when they stood in front of a door marked "Magic Club". He was astonished that there even _was_ a magic club; it sounded like a stupid club to him.

Nicolae laughed. "Don't worry, the magic club is in a normal classroom; it's not like we're occultists or anything," he said, completely missing Lovino's point.

"That's not what I mea-"

"ALFRED, YOU GIT!" Lovino jumped at the sudden noise coming out of the door. Nicolae calmly opened the door to reveal a classroom similar to the Europe Group's classroom, but smaller and filled with bookcases instead of maps. The two blondes from earlier were standing in the middle of the classroom, one looking amused, the other agitated and holding up…something. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY SCONES DON'T TASTE GOOD, YOU UNGRATEFUL BRAT?"

"What, it's true," Alfred looked unperturbed at Arthur's outburst. He turned to Nicolae. "Hey Nicolae! Did you bring our lunches? And who's the new kid?"

"Don't you remember Alfred? It's Matthew and Damyan's turn to get our lunch," Nicolae himself seemed unfazed at walking into Arthur and Alfred's fight. "As for the new kid, this is Lovino Vargas from South Italy, which is in Europe," Nicolae added as Alfred turned to a map of North America hanging on a wall.

"Well then," Alfred turned to Lovino. "It's nice to meet you, Lovino Vargas! There's one thing you need to know about me," he smiled as he flashed a thumbs-up. "I'M THE HERO!"

_Brilliant,_ Lovino thought as Alfred burst into laughter._ I'm avoiding crazy people by hiding with even _crazier_ people._ This day really wasn't turning out like Lovino wanted, but then again, he should've seen that coming. He sighed as Alfred started to calm down.

"Mattie and Damyan are taking too long…" Alfred looked dejectedly at his stomach. "I guess I'll just go eat Arthur's cooking… Make sure my gravestone is titled 'The Hero', Nicolae..." he said as he grabbed whatever Arthur was holding.

"Sure thing Alfred," Nicolae looked highly amused.

"Wait, what do you mean by your gravestone?" Arthur looked considerably less furious, but angry all the same. "If you're so against eating my cooking, I'll just give these to Kiku!" He reached forward to snatch the thing from Alfred's hand.

"Don't do that! I love your cooking!" Alfred moved his hand away, suddenly alarmed. "It just tastes disgusting, that's all!" He immediately ate the…whatever Arthur had cooked, and started to chew, gulping a few seconds later. "Hey, I think your cooking's getting better…" Alfred looked surprised. "You can actually chew it this time..."

"Git," Arthur sighed and handed him a water bottle, his voice still irritated but with affection laced in it. He seemed to have softened under the praise.

Lovino gaped. "What the hell just happened?" Nicolae looked at him and grinned.

"Don't worry, you get used to it."

"I dou-"

"Hey, we're back with the food," Lovino looked behind him to see a fair-skinned, black- haired teen wearing the standard World Academy W uniform (a blue blazer with blue plaid pants…This school really loves blue, doesn't it?) holding paper bags.

"You guys are late," Arthur noted, seating himself on a chair. "By the way, where's Matthew? He didn't get lost, did he?"

"I'm right here…" a wavy-haired, glasses-wearing teen appeared behind the other. He was wearing a tan sweater vest under his blue blazer and was sporting a black tie. He looked astonishingly like Alfred, but he had violet eyes and had a long, curly strand of hair sticking out of his hair. Lovino wondered how the polar bear in his hands wasn't dying of a heat stroke.

"Sorry Matthew, I didn't see you there," Arthur apologized.

"No kidding," Alfred took a seat across from Arthur. "You should speak up sometimes, y'know. Now then…" Alfred's glasses gleamed. "Let's eat!"

"Calm down Alfred, you sound like you're starving," Nicolae sat down near them, a faint smile on his lips. "I mean, you just ate one of Arthur's cooking."

"He ate one of Arthur's cooking?" the black haired teen sat down next to Nicolae as he passed the lunches around. "And you _lived?_"

Alfred laughed again, interrupting Arthur before he could talk. "This one was actually edible, so I'm fine!"

"Aren't you going to sit down?" the boy holding the polar bear asked Lovino as he sat down, who was just staring at the rest of the others. He gestured to the seat next to him. "What's your name? I'm sure Kumakichi would like to know."

"Who?" Lovino jumped back when the polar bear started talking. The others didn't react at all; they just continued to eat. The polar bear looked back up at his owner. "Who are you?"

"I'm Matthew, eh…" The glasses-wearing teen looked flustered, but otherwise seemed as if he was used to it.

"That polar bear can talk," Lovino stated. Polar bears do _not_ talk…but then again, if Prussians existed, then why not talking polar bears?

"Yeah," Nicolae shrugged. "I think Arthur enchanted him or something, but he can talk. Anyways, his name is Kumajirou. Why don't you say hi? He doesn't have rabies, and he's pretty cool."

Lovino shook his head. "And to think that you guys can be even crazier than Antonio and his friends…" Lovino muttered as he sat next to Matthew.

"You know Carriedo, Lovino?" Arthur said distastefully as he took a bite of his…lunch, if you can call whatever he was eating "lunch".

"Yeah! Sorry, I forgot to introduce you guys to him," Nicolae said as he turned to the two other teens. "Damyan, Matthew, meet Antonio's new pet, Lovino Vargas from South Italy!"

"How many fucking times do I have to tell you? _I'm not his pet_!" Lovino threw his hands up.

"Calm down, there's no harm done in stating something incorrect," the black haired teen said. "Anyways, I'm Damyan Nikolov, the representative of Bulgaria."

"I'm Matthew Williams, the representative from Canada and Alfred's brother," Matthew said as he held a bottle of maple syrup over his pancakes.

"And seeing as how Antonio already told you about Arthur and Alfred-"

"Wait, how do you know that?" Lovino asked, interrupting Nicolae mid-sentence.

"I was right next to you guys, it wasn't hard," he grinned. "By the way, you really shouldn't deny being Antonio's pet if his friends argue with him about claiming you."

"His friends?" Alfred piped up, his hands on a burger. "You don't mean Gilbert and Francis, do you? Heh, I feel bad for you dude; those three are trouble put together."

"Tell me about it," Lovino grumbled as he took out his pizza. "They already got me on after school cleaning duty because I swore at them."

"You have after school cleaning duty with all three of them?" Damyan paled. "If you need a decent gravestone, I know this guy from Mexico who's brilliant with anything related to death. I can give him a call, if you want me to-"

"I'm not going to _die_," Lovino was suddenly curious about Antonio's friends. Just what exactly are they like if pretty much everyone is cautious around them? "And I'm only stuck with after school cleaning duty with Antonio, not all three."

"Oh, then that's not as bad," Damyan shrugged and continued to eat.

"It's bad all the same," Arthur frowned. "He's an annoying little twit, Carriedo... I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't kill Lovino with all his chatter…"

"Lovino doesn't have to worry about Antonio," Nicolae still had on a grin. "After all, he volunteered to come with Lovino to after school cleaning duty; I'm pretty sure he wouldn't want to kill his pet on their date."

"I'M NOT HIS PET!" Lovino thundered. He started to question himself on following this kid on the first place. "_Mio Dio*_, I'm not even friends with him!"

"But you want to be," Nicolae smirked. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be denying it all the time."

"I give up," Lovino sighed. _Let them think what they will; it still doesn't change the fact that I will __**not **__nor will I __**ever **__be friends with Antonio, let alone his pet._

* * *

><p>Lovino started smacking the erasers together, intent on finishing the job early. He already told his grandfather that he would be coming home late, but he still wanted to go home as soon as possible. <em>Stupid Antonio.<em> He smacked the erasers hard, chalk dust flying everywhere. _I blame him and his friends for getting me into this._

"Lovino," Lovino heard Antonio stop sweeping behind him. "Are you okay? You seem pretty mad…Did I do something wrong?"

"Don't talk to me," Lovino growled. "It's your fault I'm in this mess in the first place."

"Well, you _did_ swear…" Lovino glared at Antonio.

"'Cause you and your stupid friends kept fighting over me!"

Antonio's eyes gleamed in understanding. "If you're worried about Gilbert and Francis, you don't need to worry about them anymore. I'm sure that they got the message that your mine, so you don't need to worry about us fighting over you anymore!"

"I don't belong to you!" Lovino dropped the erasers and turned to face Antonio. "I'm sick and tired of you saying that! What makes you think I belong to you in the first place?"

"That's easy; it's because you're my friend!" Antonio beamed at him as if that answered everything. Lovino felt the blood rush to his face.

"I'm not your friend!" Lovino yelled, his face going red. Antonio didn't answer, but instead went forward to poke his cheek.

"Fusososo, you look like a tomato, Lovi~" he poked his cheek again. "How cute~ and what do you mean by I'm not your friend? Oh well, even if I'm not, I'll just keep on trying to befriend you~"

"Don't touch me, idiota!" Lovino slapped his hand away from him. "Do I have to tell you myself? _I. Don't. Want. To. Be. Your. Friend,"_ Lovino turned his back to him. "Just go be friends with my brother instead; I'm sure he'll be more than happy to be your friend." For some reason, Lovino regretted saying this, but he was too mad to find out why."

"You mean Feliciano? I'm already friends with him," Lovino cringed. When had he become friends with Feliciano? In the back of his mind, Lovino knew that his brother probably _was_ friends with him (he _had_ met up with Antonio before in the tomato gardens when he was looking from him, and Lovino knew that Feliciano made a point to be friends with everyone he met), but why did it shock him so much? "But that's not the point; I want to be friends with _you_, Lovi."

"But _why? _How come you're so desperate in befriending me? What did I ever do that made you want to be friends with me?" Lovino couldn't remember one time he had been nice to him, so why was he trying so hard?

Antonio fell silent and Lovino smiled bitterly. _Maybe now he'll stop._ He ignored the small sadness in him at the thought that Antonio might stop pestering him to be his friend all the time. He heard Antonio take a deep breath.

_That day when I talked to you, Lovino,_

_You had threatened me with a tomato._

_Were you mad at me? It was hard to know_

_Since you were acting like a tornado.  
>()<em>

_But then I remembered what I had seen_

_Your smile as you looked out of your window._

_And I, frozen in place, looking in awe_

_How should I keep you beaming? Then, bingo!  
>()<em>

_I decided to become your best friend._

_That way, I can see you smile all the time._

_For you to grin more, that's what I intend_

_Because happiness really makes you shine  
>()<em>

_So, even if it's for a little while_

_I want to be the friend that makes you smile_

"So please stop being mad at me, Lovi," Lovino felt Antonio grab his hand. "As cute as you are when you look like a tomato, I don't like seeing you so unhappy."

"…"

"…Lovino?" Lovino felt Antonio's hand loosen.

"…Idiot," Lovino felt his face go redder than it was before. _He likes my smile? …Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to be his pe- I mean, friend…. _He looked away before he tightened his grip on Antonio's hand. _Not that I'll ever tell him._

* * *

><p><strong>Longest chapter I've written so far (X_X) I picked Romania's and Bulgaria's human names with what made sense to me, so I apologize if you don't like the name. And the comment about Mexico was because I see a lot of stuff in DA about Mexico and death (don't they have, like, 35-something words for the word "death" alone or something?), so yeah.<strong>

**How'd you like my sonnet? It references to the first chapter of the story. I hope I didn't fail too badly…My teacher once told me that people would send sonnets to the people they love. I wonder if that's true…By the way, there are more meanings to the word "pet" than an animal (^W^) Oh well, I have a feeling Lovi's warming up to Antonio *(^O^)***

Tres magnifique (French) - Google translates it to "very beautiful". To be honest, "very magnificent" would work too (It's also what I thought it meant XD) Correct me if I'm wrong!

Mon cher (French) – My Dear

Mio Dio (Italian) – My God


	5. It's Just a Stupid Nickname!

"How come you never bring your boyfriend over here?"

Lovino scowled as he looked up from his lunch. He was in the Magic Club room with the rest of his friends, all of them arranged in a circle around the floor. Lovino was sitting in between Matthew and Arthur, with Nicolae across from him and Damyan sitting on Nicolae's left. Alfred was busy helping the North American teacher fix the classroom after it was destroyed by the class (it was a very long story involving ice cream and unknown white substances that looked suspiciously like food), so he wasn't with them today. "For the last fucking time, Antonio is _not_ my 'boyfriend', Nicolae! We're not even fri-well," he nibbled on his sandwich thoughtfully. "We're _kind of_ friends, but more like acquaintances really- actually, we're not even that," he added when he saw Nicolae smirk at him.

"Yeah right," the other scoffed. "By the way, can I call him 'Toni' too or is that just something between you guys?"

Lovino narrowed his eyes at him. "How did you know that?" Ever since that day when Lovino and Antonio had after school cleaning duty, Lovino had been hanging out with Antonio more, but it wasn't because Lovino wanted to be friends with him; he just needed to stick to his guide, that's all. Nothing to do with how nice Antonio was to him even after he was so difficult to him…or the poems he would say to him…or how he devoted all his attention to him. Nothing to do with any of those at all. _Absolutely nothing._ Anyways, Antonio seemed to get it in his head that Lovino actually liked being with him and had suggested the impossible one day.

_"Hey Lovi!" Lovino turned back to see Antonio running up the halls to catch up with him, the sunlight from the right capturing his figure. "Wait up for me!"_

_ "What is it? I need to get back to class," Lovino frowned; he still remembered being sent to after school cleaning duty for the most retarded of reasons, so he wasn't going to risk going on his teacher's bad side. "Passing period's almost over, and I'll hate you forever if you make me late."_

_ "You wouldn't do that," Antonio slowed to a halt beside him. "Would you?" He asked, hesitating slightly._

_ "Maybe," Lovino started to walk, Antonio right beside him. "Don't you have something you need to tell me?"_

_ "Yeah!" Antonio brightened immediately. "So now that we're friends and all-"_

_ "We're not friends," Lovino said flatly. "We just hang out sometimes, that's all." _Just maybe a few times a day…Or almost all the time. _ He thought._

_ "No matter," Antonio waved the subject off. "Anyways, I was thinking…" He trailed off, a dazed expression on his face._

_ "Go on," Lovino waited for him to finish._

_ "You should call me 'Toni'!" He finished, looking at Lovino expectantly._

_ "Now why the fuck should I do that?" Lovino cringed at the thought of calling Antonio by a nickname. That was _way _too personal for Lovino's tastes; not to mention, it was a stupid idea._

_ "Because then we'd both have nicknames for each other!" Antonio beamed at him. "Wouldn't that be cute~?"_

_ "No," Lovino increased his pace, Antonio matching him. "That would _not_ be 'cute'; that would be _very_ idiotic."_

_ "Aw…" Antonio looked dejected. "But Lovi, calling me by a nickname could be our token of friendship!"_

_ Lovino glared at him. "You're an idiot Antonio."_

Nicolae snickered. "Do you _really_ want to know, Lovino? Either way, it doesn't change the fact that Antonio likes you enough that he'd actually ask you to call him by a nickname."

"He does not! He just…well…." Lovino turned bright red; even a blind man could see that Antonio liked him…to some degree. "DAMMIT NICOLAE, HE JUST DOESN'T OKAY?"

"_Brilliant_ argument, Vargas; you should join the debate team," Nicolae teased. "You'd be their best member."

"Shut up!" Lovino threw his sandwich at him, the other catching it effortlessly.

"You need to work on your aim," the Romanian's eyes twinkled. "Maybe Antonio could help you with that- why don't I go call him here now? You guys could get started right away! Don't get carried away though; it's still school hours."

"Why you little-" Lovino reached for his spoon.

"Enough! I'd rather eat my lunch in peace, thank you very much," Arthur snapped, eating another one of his burnt creations. "And can't you just leave the poor lad alone, Nicolae? I don't want you encouraging him into bringing Carriedo here; it's bad enough that I'm in the same class as him, I don't want to eat lunch with him in the same room as well."

"But if I don't encourage him, he'll never do it," Nicolae pointed out.

"How come you're so intent on bringing me and Antonio closer?" Lovino threw his arms up then dropped them down. "It's bad enough that I have to put up with him every other time; lunch is pretty much the only time I _don't_ spend time with him," Sure Lovino didn't mind as much being with Antonio (kind of; he was still deciding on whether or not having the eccentric Spanish teen's attention was a good thing), but he could only take so much of his happy-go-lucky attitude. That and he was still pestering him about the whole "Toni" thing, something that Lovino was bent on avoiding.

"That's exactly why!" Nicolae threw his arms up as well. "I kind of feel bad for Antonio- all he wants to do is to spend some time with you, and all you do is push him away," He frowned as he put his arms down. "The _least _you can do is be a _little_ nicer to him."

"It's not like I don'ttry to be nice," Lovino wasn't pushing him away on purpose…all the time. "He just gets on my nerves."

"Then why are you two still friends?" Damyan asked, looking up from his lunch. "I thought that Arthur and Alfred dating would be weird enough-"

"What do you mean it's weird that Alfred and I are dati-?"

"-So why are you friends with Antonio if you dislike him?" Damyan went on, interrupting Arthur.

"I don't _dislike_ him; he just…" Lovino paused. Why _was _he pushing away Antonio? He didn't have a legit reason to _not_ like him; sure he could be annoying, but he was a good person overall. _He may be an idiot, but it's not _that_ bad being with him. I mean, we _are _friends after all…Kind of. If you count a person's undying attention to you as "being friends"._ Lovino jolted when he saw the others staring at him. "Well? What are you guys waiting for?"

"Your answer," they all chorused together, each holding an expression of keen interest.

Lovino fidgeted under their stares. "Well," _Might as well get this over with_. He thought. "I don't have one."

"Well then," Nicolae leaned back into a chair, a triumphant look on his face. "If you _don't_ hate him, why don't you do something nice for him? Like," he smiled devilishly. "Calling him a special nickname or something…How's 'Toni' sound for you, Lovino?"

"No way." There were times when Lovino _really_ wondered why he and Nicolae were friends. "I refuse to call Antonio by such a ridiculous nickname."

"Then how 'bout another one? You could call him Carrie- Nah, that's Arthur's thing," Damyan suggested, looking thoughtful.

Lovino sighed. These people were ridiculous. "I am _not_ calling him by _any_ nickname, capisce?"

"How about," Matthew's voice startled them all; he was usually so quiet that it was almost like he was invisible. "You eat lunch with him? I mean, you eat lunch with us all the time; if you eat lunch with him, you can spend time with him while being nice to him at the same time," everyone stared at him, causing him to blush. "What? It's a win-win situation, isn't it?"

"I don't know…" Lovino was strangely hesitant. "It might go wrong…"

"Don't worry," Nicolae assured him, his eyes twinkling again. "_What could possibly go wrong?"_

* * *

><p><em>I should've seen this coming.<em> Lovino thought somberly as he followed Antonio, who was chatting to Francis and Gilbert next to him, Francis on his right and Gilbert to his left. Antonio seemed exceptionally giddy today now that Lovino would be eating lunch with him. _Nicolae probably said that on_ _purpose to jinx me; now I'm stuck with Antonio and _those _two…_

Lovino sighed; he wished that this was all over and done with. Antonio he could (kind of) handle, but he still hadn't forgiven the other two for getting him into after school cleaning duty. _I shouldn't have agreed to do this in the first place…I can't believe that I didn't think that _they_ would be with him as well._ His friends probably forgot that eating with Antonio would mean eating with what the rest of what the school called "The Bad Touch Trio"; even though Lovino still didn't know _why_ they were called that, he'd rather not find out. _Or they're just jerks and made me come anyways. _He thought bitterly, slowing his pace down.

"Lovi, where're you going?" Antonio called to him when he realized that Lovino was lagging behind. "We still haven't gotten there yet!" He smiled at him, the happiness contained in it blinding Lovino. "This is going to be so much fun! I've wanted to eat lunch with you ever since you came to this school, but I can never find you, no matter how hard I look…"

"You actually _look_ for me? " It wasn't like he cared, but Lovino had assumed that Antonio had looking for him after a few times. Not that he expected Antonio to be looking for him in the first place. "How often?"

"Almost every lunch," Antonio answered promptly. "But my friends stop me once in a while."

"That's because you keep asking us to look for him," Francis said with a sigh. "We need a break y'know…"

"Where do you eat lunch anyways, Lovino?" Gilbert asked him. "Of course, it's probably not as awesome as where we eat, but I'm getting tired of Antonio asking us to look for you during lunch; the magnificent me needs his food, and Gilbird keeps wandering everywhere," he tickled the yellow chick on his shoulder. "Right, buddy?" There was an answering cheep from the little bird.

"The same goes for me," Francis added. "Why don't you just tell us where you hide during lunch to end m- our pain already? This school is too big for its own good, and Pierre keeps disappearing as well." A small, white bird was riding on Francis's shoulder, which Lovino assumed to be Pierre. _Is Antonio the only one without a pet? _Lovino thought, trying to remember if he'd ever seen Antonio with a pet (the bull didn't count; Antonio had said that it was his parents and that he wasn't allowed to keep him). _And why did they both bring their pets today? Unless…_

"Hell if I'm telling you where I normally eat lunch at," Lovino answered, trying to change his train of thought. He felt like smiling at the fact that they hadn't found his hiding spot. He had to give Nicolae props; he may be insufferable at times, but at least he was good at hiding him. "I don't want you guys anywhere near me, and some of my friends don't want you around either."

"And who are these 'friends' of yours?" There was a slightly sour tune on Francis's normally smooth voice. "I would like to know who exactly wouldn't enjoy _my_ company."

Lovino sniggered. "What does the name 'Arthur Kirkland' mean to you?" Although Lovino had never seen those two interact before, it wasn't hard to tell that the Englishman hated the Frenchman's guts.

"Ah," Francis looked slightly interested. "You are friends with _him._ Well then, that narrows down our options; I'll just ask him the next time I see him for where your little hiding spot is~"

"Like he'd tell you. You guys would probably start fighting first," Judging by the number of complaints Arthur had about him, it was pretty safe to assume that they fought a lot…or all the time, as Nicolae put it.

"But even the Student Council President must act cordial around his Vice President sometimes," Francis said, a smug look on his face.

"_You're_ the _Vice President_ of the Student Council?" _This school is officially nuts. _Lovino thought gravely. _If they're crazy enough to elect _him_ as Vice President._

"You're not the only one surprised," Antonio laughed. "Francis is always complaining about having too much work, but he never quits being Vice President. I suppose it's because she's there, isn't that right?" He asked, glancing at the other.

"As always, you are correct." Lovino was curious on whom this "she" was, but Francis didn't seem likely to tell him; Lovino wasn't even sure that he even wanted to know which girl was capable of holding the Frenchman's interest. _Must be a really special girl…_ He figured, thinking on how many times Antonio had told him of Francis's latest "girlfriend".

"Hey you guys," They all turned to Gilbert, who was opening double oak doors. "We're here already," Gilbert said as they came into an elegantly furnished cafeteria. The large room was filled with students, many of them sitting on oak tables on either side of the room, the tables looking more like desks than actual dining tables. The walls were made of wood the color of chocolate, with mini chandeliers hanging on the ceiling above every other table, the small windows parallel to them. At the front of the room was a glass pane, with exquisite food from all countries lined up in front of it. They started walking to the end of the room until they reached a table to the right of the glass pane; Lovino was surprised to see Feliciano sitting on the table, numerous amounts of foreign food in front of him.

"Feliciano? What are you doing here?" From what Feliciano told him at home, he normally ate lunch with Ludwig (much to Lovino's chagrin) and the Japanese representative, Honda Kiku. "I thought you ate lunch somewhere else."

"Ve~" Feliciano smiled at him. "Ludwig and Kiku are busy helping the North American teacher clean up his classroom, and Elizabeta and Roderich are busy with the Music Club today; I almost had to eat alone, but Antonio and the others said that I could eat lunch with them, so I agreed!" Lovino had to wonder; was his brother really this stupid or was he just too friendly? It was probably the latter. "How about you fratello; what are you doing here? Are you eating lunch with us as well?"

"Si! Lovi wanted to eat with us today, so we're going to need an extra lunch," Antonio answered for him as he took a seat on Feliciano's right. "Do you mind getting another lunch for him, Feli?

Feli?

Since when did Antonio start calling his brother "Feli"?

_He _did _call me "Lovi" the first chance he got…He's probably just one of those people who call others by their nickname. What am I getting so worked up for? He just called him by a stupid nickname. _Still, Lovino couldn't help but feel slightly upset at this. He took a seat across from Antonio, with Francis sitting on Feliciano's left and Gilbert sitting across from Francis. "It's fine, I can get my lunch later," Lovino said, looking at the long line in front of the glass pane. "And I refuse to eat anything _but_ Italian food, something I doubt this school has."

"They have Italian food," Francis assured him. "But you are missing out Lovino," he added sharply. "You should try out French food, for it is the best; I must cook something for you in the school kitchen sometime."

_I doubt it's good._ Lovino thought as he looked dubiously at Francis's lunch, which was almost a full course meal. The appetizer featured scallops and mushrooms sautéed in butter with seasonings and a bread crumb topping, with his main course being a seared duck breast glazed with sweet orange sauce. Adding to this was a green salad and a plate of brie cheese surrounded by grapes, pear slices, and figs. Lovino wondered what the school's budget was if they were capable of affording something like this.

"Yeah right!" Gilbert grinned. "Everyone knows that German food is the best!" Unlike Francis's, Gilbert's lunch was much simpler and not to mention, smaller. His lunch included a soup with asparagus floating on it, noodles with raisins decorated over it, and a rectangular biscuit with white dough on the top; embedded on the dough as an impression of a knight and a horse. "I'm not giving you any though," he said when he saw Lovino looking at his food. "You're too un-awesome for my awesome food."

"I didn't want any of your food anyways," Lovino growled. "I just want Italian food; nothing else."

"Why don't you try Spanish food then?" Antonio questioned. His lunch consisted of baked leeks with the green cut off with jamón serrano ham wafers surrounding it and a fish & shellfish soup. Adding to his meal was seafood paella, a bowl of gazpacho, and a delicious looking rabbit soaked in tomato sauce with potatoes completing the dish. Antonio offered Lovino some churros from his plate. "Say 'Ah' Lovi~"

"No. Fucking. Way." Lovino hoped that he wasn't blushing as his friends snickered; this was way too embarrassing. "I refuse to say 'Ah' like an idiot."

"Are you going to eat it then?" Antonio tilted his head. "You don't have to say 'Ah'."

"I'd rather eat Feliciano's food; at least I know it tastes good," he gestured to his brother's food, which he had been cheerily eating. Feliciano's lunch included an antipasto made with smoked salmon with smoked chicken underneath, and roast beef, brie and cheddar cheeses, olives, and tomato chutney added to the mix. The rest of his food was a garden salad, pasta with Alfredo sauce, and an apple crisp.

"Really? I've never tasted Italian food before," Antonio mused, his churro falling back on his plate. Feliciano looked astonished, even going as far as to almost opening his eyes.

"That's horrible! Italian food is the best!" Feliciano took a forkful of his pasta. "Here, have some of my pasta. You haven't lived until you've tasted Italian pasta."

"Okay then," Antonio leaned in to eat Feliciano's forkful. "Ah~"

An unusual feeling settled in Lovino, making him feel like punching Antonio; he didn't know why, but _something_ in him wanted to punch him. _Why? _He asked himself, completely puzzled._ It's not like seeing Feliciano feeding him annoys me…especially not because Antonio just offered to feed me. I'm not mad or anything…_

Gilbert "kesesese'd" right next to him. "No fair Antonio! Getting Feliciano to feed you…that's a dirty trick you know!"

_Not mad, not mad, not mad, not mad, not mad…_

Antonio paused. "It's not a trick if he offered me, Gilbert! Plus, first come, first serve right?" He started to lean in again.

_Not mad, not mad, not mad, not mad, not mad…!_

Francis chuckled. "It's like you two are a married couple; only husbands and wives feed each other this way."

_NOT MAD, NOT MAD, NOT MAD, NOT MAD-!_

Antonio finally ate the piece of pasta. He chewed thoughtfully. "This is really good! Can I have another bite Feli? Oh and," he turned to Francis, a grin on his face. "I wouldn't mind it if I was married to Feliciano."

"I've had enough," Lovino stood up suddenly, on the verge of snapping. All eyes turned to him and he quickly made an excuse, wondering what had gotten into him. "I'm getting my food; watching you guys eat is making me hungry."

"What's wrong Lovino?" Gilbert smirked, noticing how quick Lovino went to justify himself. "Were you jealous that you weren't the one feeding Antonio? Or because he wouldn't mind being married to Feliciano?"

"Hell no," Lovino snapped. "I'm just hungry."

"It's okay Lovino," Francis had a smile tugging on the corner of his lips. "Being jealous is not a sin…Or at least, being jealous to your extent. Why don't you feed Antonio to even the score? That way, you two could be a married couple as well."

"That's it, I'm leaving," Lovino snarled, turning his back on them.

"Wait Lovi!" Lovino looked back to Antonio. "I want you to feed me! More than I want to be married to Feli-"

"IDIOTA!" So much for _not_ being mad. "WHAT THE HELL MAKES YOU THINK I'LL DO THAT AFTER MY BROTHER T-" Lovino stopped himself before he said 'took you away from me'- he wondered what compelled him to almost say it. He didn't like Antonio or anything; he just didn't like his brother feeding him like how a wife would feed their husband. He _really_ wasn't jealous. _Really._ Lovino looked at the others, who were waiting for him to finish his exclamation. "-otally fed you just now," he finished lamely, hoping no one would notice; luckily, Antonio didn't.

"I still want you to feed me!" Antonio complained, with his friends minus Feliciano snickering again in the background.

"No way; I'm leaving, and that's it," Lovino turned back again only for his arm to be tugged back. He turned to see that Antonio was leaning across the table, dangerously close to touching the food. He had apparently grabbed Lovino's arm. "What is it this time? Let go of me!"

Antonio was silent, still hanging on to his arm even after Lovino's futile attempts to free it. Finally, he broke the silence.

_Have I upset you?_

_I'm sorry then. Please stay. I_

_Want you here with me._

"Please? You don't have to feed me. Just stay," Antonio pleaded, olive green eyes as wide as a tomato. Lovino took this chance to set his arm free. He glowered at him, taking in deep breaths.

"You're an idiot Toni," He said finally, and with that, Lovino walked away.

* * *

><p>Antonio slipped back into his seat, a defeated air around him. "I really wanted him to stay…"<p>

"No kidding," Gilbert scoffed, going back to eating his lunch. "You even made a poem about it. What was that, a haiku?"

Antonio didn't answer, causing Feliciano to worry. "Don't worry Antonio; fratello probably isn't mad with you. Hey…" Feliciano trailed off with a small smile. "Can I call you 'Toni' too? It's such a cute nickname!"

"True, it is very endearing," Francis commented with a small laugh. "When did he start calling you that? I never knew you two were that close."

"What are you two talking abo…" realization dawned on Antonio. He quickly got up. "WAIT LOVI, WAIT UP!" Antonio stumbled past the table and started to run towards Lovino. "SAY THAT AGAIN! CALL ME 'TONI' AGAIN!"

Lovino looked back at him, amber eyes cross, but it wasn't hard to tell that he was blushing. "No way idiota!" He turned his back on him and started to walk faster. "That was a one-time thing, Antonio! I'm not doing it again!" He called, not even turning back.

"Please Lovi? I'll do anything!" Antonio started to sprint to catch up with Lovino, who was already at the double oak doors. He skidded to a stop in front of the doors, Lovino already outside the cafeteria.

"Don't _ever_ pull a stunt like that again, you hear me Toni?" Lovino's voice was low and dark, a tone that surprised Antonio. "I won't forgive you if you do anything like that again; I don't like it when you're that friendly with my brother." Lovino closed the doors on him, but not before Antonio heard Lovino whisper something he probably thought he didn't hear.

"_Especially_ since you have me."

* * *

><p><strong>Non-traditional haiku (I thank my friend for giving me that idea). Man, Hetalia fans are crazy; there actually <em>is<em> a GilbirdxPierre pairing! I didn't know that until it came up in the story and I went to check… By the way, I apologize if I messed up on the food; I have not experienced an Italian, Spanish, French, or German lunch, so I just turned to the Internet for those things (that, and I have never taken Culinary Arts, so I apologize if the food combinations wouldn't work). I don't know why, but I really like having Arthur being on a last name basis with Antonio (I like the last name basis rule).**


	6. The Plan

_Wow, it's been some time since I've updated this…Oh well, this chapter is unlike other chapters as it focuses on Antonio's and Lovino's friends (which basically means this is their Day in the Limelight…kind of, since the next chapter is the other half of this one and it's still about Lovi and Toni) Hope you enjoy!_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Prussia has logged in<strong>_

_**France has logged in**_

**Prussia**: Remind me again why we're using the school chat; it's totally un-awesome. I can't change my username from the one the school made us use! Then we have that whole spell check thing installed in here…

**France: **What would you have changed your username into? Don't tell me you're going to use "AwesomenessPersonified" again; we had to change your password once, don't make us do so again.

**Prussia:** You changed my password? ! Since when? !

**France:** A few days ago; we had that guy from Estonia help us. I am deeply sorry, but it was necessary!

**Prussia: ** …

**France:** Gilbert…?

**Prussia:** …So dude, what did you need me here for? I can be doing so much better stuff right now.

**France: **Have you noticed our friend's behavior as of late?

**Prussia: **You mean Antonio's? Who wouldn't? He keeps gushing on about that Italian of his. I mean, sure his brother is cute and he is too, but he seems like high-maintenance.

**France:** Oi, we're not here to criticize Antonio's choice of pets; this isn't the first time he's picked up someone…_tres inhabituel*_

**Prussia: **I have no idea what you just said.

**France: **It does not matter.

**Prussia:** …This is a waste of time I could be using for more awesome things.

**France:** Like playing with Gilbird?

_Sent at 12:31 PM  
><em>

**France: **…Gilbert?

_Sent at 12:45 PM  
><em>

**France: **Your brother Ludwig says hi.

**Prussia:** WHAT'S WEST DOING OVER THERE? !

**France:** Ah, it's good to see you again _mon cher_. What were you doing for almost half an hour?

**Prussia:** What I was doing is way too awesome for you to comprehend, but what's West doing over at your house? You better not pull anything, Francis, or I'll-

**France:** _Mon ami_, it was just a jest. And I am at the Student Council Room, not at my house.

**Prussia:** …I hate it when you use French. What are you doing at school anyways? You can do so much better.

**France:** Indeed, but I have matters to attend to here. Speaking of matters to attend to, we need to talk about Antonio's recent behavior.

**Prussia:** What about it? Other than his obsession with Feli-chen's brother dearest of course.

**France:** That is exactly what we need to talk about. It breaks my heart to see Antonio's love unrequited, so I have taken it upon myself to bring them together.

**Prussia:** So what does this have to do with me?

**France:** You're going to help me of course.

**Prussia:** Sorry dude, but I'm happy by myself, so I know nothing of this love ****.

**Prussia:** **** this censor, why are we in the school-chat in the first place?

**France:** Because I am at school and the school-chat is the most private chat I can think of at the moment.

**Prussia:** What are you talking about? Our twitter's sort of safe…And we could always use my blog.

**France:** I'd rather not risk it. So, will you help me or not?

**Prussia:** Kesesese, you're going to need my awesomeness, so why not?

**France:** Brilliant. Be right back, Arthur found out that I'm using his computer.

**Prussia:** Sure, sure, but why didn't you use yours in the first place? It's like, what, a few yards away from that brow's computer?

_Sent at 1:07 PM  
><em>

**Prussia: **Oi, what's taking you so long? You usually lose your fights faster than this…

_Sent at 1:17 PM  
><em>

**Prussia:** This is totally un-awesome; I've been waiting for almost fift-

_**Romania has logged in**_

_**Bulgaria has logged in**_

_**Canada has logged in**_

_**America has logged in**_

_**England has logged in**_

**Prussia: **? !

**France:** Sorry, I had to- what is _he _doing here? Gilbert, I thought you made this chat private!

**Prussia:** I did!

**Bulgaria:** So we hear that you're trying to set up Lovino with Antonio-

**Prussia:** How'd you know that?

**Canada:** We've been listening on this chat since it started.

**France:** How did you know we made this chat in the first place?

**England:** You were careless; you never use my computer unless you're up to something.

**Prussia:** That doesn't explain how you managed to hack into our chat.

**England:** Who ever said anything about hacking? If anything, I blame that frog for changing my wall paper.

**Prussia: **What does that have to do with anything? …Wait, Francis, did you change it to the-?

**France:** _Oui*._ His expression was priceless.

**England:** You're going to get it Francis.

**America: **You have to admit, you _did_ look pretty funny Artie.

**England:** Whose side are you on Alfred? AND DON'T CALL ME ARTIE! My name is Arthur and I would like to be called as such.

**Canada:** Hey, we're getting off track…

**Romania:** Good point my little Canadian friend. So, are you or are you not setting up our precious Italian friend with Antonio?

**Prussia:** What's it to you?

**Romania:** I propose a proposition-

**America:** LOL "propose a proposition". Aren't you already doing that?

**England:** Shut it Alfred.

**Romania:** Thanks Artie.

**England:** DON'T CALL ME ARTIE!

**America:** Yeah, that's my thing!

**Romania:** _As I was saying_, are you two gentlemen willing to race with us?

**Prussia:** Race for what?

**Romania:** To see who gets them together first.

**France:** Wait, you want to set up Lovino and Antonio as well?

**Romania:** Of course! It breaks my heart to see Antonio's love unrequited, so I have taken it upon myself to bring them together.

**Prussia:** You stole that from Francis, didn't you?

**Romania:** I most certainly did not. So are you two up to it?

**America: **Wait a minute Nicolae, I have an idea.

**Romania: **What is it Alfred?

**America:** How about we make a bet? A race is fun and all, but bets are even more interesting.

**Bulgaria:** What is with you and bets? Sure it's how you and Arthur got together, but still…

**Canada:** I think it's a nice idea.

**England:** I agree with Matthew; bets _would_ make things rather interesting, wouldn't it? It'd give me a chance to get back on a certain git as well.

**Romania:** Alright then, we're betting.

**France:** _Attendez une minute*_, we have not agreed to this yet!

**America:** What, are you two afraid or something?

**Prussia:** (≖ヮ≖) Kesesesese! The awesome me is never afraid! You're on!

**France:** Wait a minute Gilbert; we don't know what we're getting ourselves into!

**Bulgaria:** Are you afraid to admit that we're better at romance than you?

**France:** Ha! The French are the best when it comes to romance!

**Bulgaria:** Well, we have Matthew, and he has French blood coursing through his veins, so we're at an even match.

**Canada: **? !

**France:** I look forward to squaring with _mon petit Canadien_* ლ(= з = )ლ

**Canada:** … T.T

**Romania:** So! Now that the bet's on, let's discuss the stakes!

* * *

><p><em><strong>S. Italy has logged in<strong>_

_**Spain has logged in**_

**S. Italy:** What are you doing here, you tomato *******? ! … ****, there's a censor on this thing!

**Spain:** But Lovi, I knew you'd be here when I saw the chat room named "Lovino is Right Here!"

**S. Italy:** _Questi idioti*! _I told them to make it a private chat! How'd you get in?

**Spain:** Private? But it said public when I got in…

**S. Italy:** What? ! But it says private now… AAH! First they interrupt my siesta and then they don't even show up! And now you're here too!

**Spain:** Lovi, aren't you happy that I'm here?

**S. Italy:** Shut up! I didn't even know you'd be on the school chat in the first place! The only reason I'm here is because my friends made me!

**Spain:** Your friends told you to get on the school chat too? I was supposed to get on hours ago to meet up with Francis and Gilbert in the school chat, but this is the only chat room I see…

**S. Italy: **Do I look like I care? Why don't you just log off right now and come back later?

**Spain:** But I want to talk to you Lovi! I have something to ask you!

_Sent on 2:36 PM  
><em>

**Spain: **Lovi, are you still here?

**S. Italy:** Of course I am you idiot! Feliciano just came in and had to use my computer for a while.

**Spain:** You're such a good brother Lovi~

**S. Italy:** Shut up! And didn't I tell you not to call me Lovi, Toni?

**Spain:** Did you just call me Toni?

**S. Italy: **Idiot, of course I didn't. So what did you want to ask me?

**Spain:** I could've sworn you did…Oh well, you know how there's a field trip next week?

**S. Italy:** Your point?

**Spain: **Why don't you walk around with me? It'll be lots of fun!

**S. Italy:** Why the **** would I do that? And aren't we supposed to stick with our guides or something?

**Spain:** It'll be fine if we tell them where we're going. So will you?

**S. Italy:** **** no.

**Spain:** But why not?

**S. Italy:** Because I don't want to be alone with you!

**S. Italy:** IGNORE THE LAST MESSAGE!My brother Nicolae came in and typed that. It's not like I didn't want to be alone with you because I always feel all bubbly inside…

**S. Italy:** JUST IGNORE EVERYTHING I'VE SAID, ****IT! THE ANSWER IS NO!

_Sent on 2:47 PM  
><em>

**S. Italy: **Antonio…?

**Spain:** A re you sure that you don't want to walk with me?

B ecause I'll do everything I

C an so that you'll be with me

**S. Italy:** What the…Is this another poem? Just stop trying already, it's pointless…

**Spain:** D o not think that I'll stop trying.

**S. Italy:** =`△=There's no way you're getting me to walk with you.

**Spain: **E ven if you pout and deny, I'll

F ind a way somehow.

**S. Italy:** …Why are you doing this?

**Spain:** G ood question, although that is not a

H ard question at all.

I just want to be with you, that's all

_Sent on 3:10 PM  
><em>

**Spain:** You still there Lovi…?

**S. Italy:** …You're an idiot Toni…

**Spain:** Is that a yes then? I could just continue the poem if it's still a no…

**S. Italy:** …I'll walk with you.

**Spain:** REALLY? ! FUSOSOSOSO, that's great! We're going to have so much fun Lovi~ *(´ヮ`)~*

**S. Italy:** Shut up! I only agreed since I didn't want you to go through the whole alphabet!

**Spain:** That doesn't matter; I get to be with my precious Lovi! Isn't that fantastic?

**S. Italy:** …

**Spain: **?

**S. Italy:** IDIOT (╬..≥/ / /≤..)ノ

_**S. Italy has logged off**_

_**Spain has logged off**_

* * *

><p><strong>Chat room: Team Alpha Beta Formation USA<br>**

_** Absolutely_Invincible_British_Gentleman has logged in**_

_**The#1americanhero has logged in**_

_**Maplesyrup has logged in**_

_**Iamnotavampire has logged in**_

_**Youryesmeansmyno has logged in**_

**Alfred:** Ok! Let plan Alpha Beta Formation USA commence!

**Damyan: **I thought this was more of Epsilon Omega Block Canada.

**Nicolae:** No way; if anything, it's a lot more like Beta Alpha Defence UK.

**Damyan:** Beta Alpha…? Oh wait, Epsilon Omega Block Canada is the one with the polar bear right?

**Matthew:** You mean Kimakirou?

**Alfred: **It's Kumajirou and we're getting side-tracked! Ok, Matthew, you're my back-up. Damyan, Nicolae, you two are my back-up as well. Artie, you get the important job of being my back-up.

**Damyan:** What are you going to do?

**Alfred:** I'm the hero of course! \ (≧ヮ≦) /

**Arthur:** …Git o̿ ̭ o̿

**Alfred:** Aw, don't be like that Artie.

**Arthur:** Haven't I told you enough times not to call me Artie? !

**Alfred:** But I like calling you Artie!

**Arthur:** Brat…Just do what you want!

**Alfred: **Arthur, your denial is showing; you know you like it when I call you Artie~

**Arthur: **Shut it, I'm not in denial! ! ! ≥/ / /≤

**Nicolae:** See Damyan, I _told_ you it was more of a Beta Alpha Defence UK! They even have the roles right!

**Damyan:** Point taken. Shouldn't we get back on track now?

**Alfred:** Hahaha, sorry for that! Speaking of which, did you manage to hack into their conversation Nicolae?

**Nicolae:** You wound me Alfred, of course I did! Haven't you learned how good I am in the computer yet? Of course, I'm not as good as that guy from Estonia, but if there's anything I learned from that Russian, it's how to hack ﾟヮﾟ

**Alfred:** Good job Nicolae, I didn't doubt you for a second; I was just double-checking. Now that that's done, we're going to beat up that lame-o duo and win. That. Bet!

**Arthur:** We'd better win this. Whose idea was it to make a bet with them anyways? They're both in the Bad Touch Trio, and it's best not to mess with them together…

**Nicolae:** If you have anyone to blame, blame your boyfriend, but in his defense, it was a pretty good idea. The stakes aren't even that high.

**Arthur:** You're joking; I'd rather wear nothing but a waiter apron and run around school than to lose that bet.

**Damyan:** Haven't you done that before?

**Arthur: **Of course not! Gentlemen do not pull of those kinds of shenanigans.

**Nicolae:** You know Arthur, Francis has shown me some VERY interesting pictures of you before…Are you _sure_ you haven't done that apron thing, except without the running around the school part?

**Arthur:** That little- HE'S GOING TO GET IT NOW!

**Alfred:** Hey Nicolae, d'ya mind showing me those pictures?

**Arthur: **ALFRED-

**Alfred:** I was only kidding Artie. Sheesh, you need to calm down… So back to the plan! Did Antonio do anything romantic like you predicted Nicolae?

**Nicolae:** Of course he did. First chance he got, and he practically asked Lovino into a date…that is, if walking around with each other in a field trip counts as a date.

**Alfred: **And did Lovino say yes?

**Nicolae:** After a poem, yeah.

**Damyan:** Wow, that kid's a sucker for poems, isn't he? Oh well, that makes it easier for us, doesn't it? ´ヮ`

**Alfred:** Yup! Now we just need that sappy love confession and we win!

**Matthew:** Wait just a minute…

**Alfred:** What is it Matthew?

**Matthew:** We all know that Lovino isn't exactly "expressive"; it took him this long just to admit he's friends with Antonio. How in the world are we going to get him to confess?

**Alfred:** Good point Matthew, buuut….

**Matthew**: ̢ô̡ ̮ ̢ô̡ ?

**Alfred:** You're forgetting that you're talking to a master here! I got Arthur to confess eventually, right? He and Arthur are pretty similar, so if I'm right, he'll confess once he stops denying that he likes Antonio and realizes his feelings for him!

**Arthur:** How am I like Lovino? We're nothing alike!

**Nicolae:** You two are a lot more alike than you think…

**Arthur:** What're you-

**Damyan:** Guys, we're wasting our time. Ok, so if Lovino's going to confess after he realizes his feelings for Antonio, how are we going to get him to realize it?

**Alfred:** Good point…Unfortunately, the hero can't help much on that aspect; I figured out by accident that Arthur liked me, and then I just asked him it was true, and then-

**Nicolae:** Alfred, we know what happened at your confession; we were there. Anyways, fret not _prietenii mei_*, for I have a plan. It goes something like this…

* * *

><p><strong>Chat room: The Awesome Duo + 1<br>**

_**Parisisindeedsplendid has logged in**_

_**AwesomenessPersonified has logged in**_

**Francis:** You figured out the password? !

**Gilbert: **Remember when I had to leave earlier today? I was trying to figure out the password then.

**Francis:** You are smarter than I thought…

**Gilbert:** What's that supposed to mean? It's not like it was hard; you really shouldn't have changed the password into "Francisisthebest" you know. It took me about five seconds to figure that out.

**Francis:** Then what were you doing for the rest of that time?

**Gilbert:** Playing with Gilbird of course!

**Francis:** …

**Gilbert:** ?

**Francis: **Ahem, moving on. Did you manage to get in their chat?

**Gilbert:** Kesesese, Nicolae's not the only one to pick up hacking from that Russian.

**Francis:** I will assume that that's a yes.

**Gilbert:** It is; the magnificent me always pulls through, no matter what the task is.

**Francis:** I hope that you will pull through here, _mon ami_; if we lose that bet, all is lost.

**Gilbert:** Don't be such a wuss Francis, the bet isn't that bad…If you don't mind that kind of stuff…

**Francis:** I don't think anyone does.

**Gilbert:** Heh, don't worry; we'll win this thing, no joke.

**Francis:** I hope so. So did you see their plan?

**Gilbert:** Yup! So it goes like this…

* * *

><p>Lovino sat on his favorite spot on the window over-looking the tomato garden. He could see Romulus playing with Feliciano and Niccolo, but he didn't want to join them.<p>

_What have I gotten myself into?_ He thought, his minds swimming with thoughts of what he had just agreed to. _It's not like this is the first time I've been alone with Antonio, but this is the first time I actually _agreed_ to it._

He sighed. Why couldn't he have just refused him? _Don't think too much about it; it's a field trip, so there will be more people there than me and Antonio. Plus, my friends are coming as well, so it's not like we're _really_ alone; if I need to hide from Antonio, they'll help me get away from him._

Lovino stood up and looked back at his computer. He looked back to the chat he had with Antonio and re-read the whole thing for what felt like the thousandth time today. He stared at the words "I just want to be with you" and felt himself heat up. Why did those words affect him so much? _It's not like it's true or anything…_ Still, he couldn't help but be strangely happy at those words.

* * *

><p><strong>Alfred:<strong> So everyone knows what they're going to do, right?

**Arthur:** For the millionth time Alfred, _yes._ Honestly, it's like you think we have the attention span of goldfish!

**Alfred:** Sorry, sorry! Just double-checking.

**Matthew:** Have more faith in us Alfred; we'll be able to pull this off.

**Damyan:** Yeah, Matthew's right. Man…Francis and Gilbert won't know what hit them!

**Nicolae:**You've got that right Damyan. We'll get Lovino and Antonio together in no time!

'

**Francis:** That's their plan?

**Gilbert:** Yup. Surprising, isn't it?

**Francis:** Very. I am surprised that their plan is that simple.

**Gilbert:** Does it matter how complex their plan is? Now that we know what our enemy is up to, we can form a counter-attack as well as form our own plan. They won't see it coming!

'

**Alfred:**I don't know guys…I have a feeling that something's off, like something's _wrong_ here.

**Nicolae:** Aren't you the optimistic one? This _is_ a brilliant plan, if I do say so myself. Just what could go wrong?

'

**Francis: **That is a good point, Gilbert. How about you handle the counter-attack part and I the romance part? It is what we do best, no?

**Gilbert:** I'm good with that. Kesesese, we'll show them what it means to cross the Bad Touch Trio!

'

**Alfred:**Still, something seems off about this…

**Arthur:** What happened to all that enthusiasm you had on earlier?Don't worry love, everything will go fine.

**Damyan:** Yeah, it's not like we'll get sabotaged or something.

'

**Gilbert:**I've got to give you props; you really know your stuff when it comes to this romance thing.

**Francis:** Have I not told you already that the French are the best when it comes to romance? Just you see, those two will be together in no time, and you and I will have won our bet. It is a favorable situation for us, is it not?

'

**Alfred:**You guys are right…Hahaha, what was I doing, worrying? Nothing can go wrong with this plan! Nothing!

_Sent on 4:30 PM  
><em>

**Nicolae:** Hey you guys…

**Alfred:** What is it Nicolae?

**Nicolae:** I think we have a problem…

'

**Gilbert:**True, true. I wonder when they'll realize that we've hacked into their chat? I hate to say it, but that Nicolae's almost as good as me. _Almost._

**Francis:** Even if they do, the damage has already been done; we'd have already seen their plan.

'

**Alfred:**What do you mean we've been hacked? ! By who? !

**Nicolae:** Who else? Shoot, I'd forgotten that Gilbert knows how to hack as well…

**Damyan: **Did they do anything bad?

**Nicolae:** No…but I think they've seen our plan!

**Alfred: ** What? !

**Arthur:** What are we going to do now? Our whole plan could be ruined! ! !

**Damyan:** Well, we can't do much, can we? We're just going to have to stick with it and hope for the best…

**Alfred:** …

**Arthur:** …

**Nicolae:** …

**Damyan: **…?

**Matthew: **You guys, this is ridiculous. You're acting like all is lost!

**Alfred:** That's 'cause it is.

**Matthew:** I never thought I'd see the day where _you_ give up after one minor setback. Guess it's time for me to use that French blood, eh?

**Alfred:** What're you…?

**Matthew:** I have a plan.

'

**Francis:**You are a devious fiend Gilbert…This is a splendid counter-attack! Ah…to see the look on Arthur's face when he loses this bet…I can't wait to win!

'

**Alfred:**Wow, this is really smart Matthew! They'll never know what hit them!

'

**Gilbert:**Kesesese, you flatter me too much, Francis old pal, but it is well deserved. So now that we have a plan…

'

**Matthew:**Thanks Alfred, that means a lot coming from you. So now that we have a plan…

'

Lovino leaned back, wondering why he was suddenly looking forward to the field-trip.

'

**Gilbert:**Let the games begin.

**Matthew:** Let the games begin.

* * *

><p><em>(Matthew's last line isn't spaced from Gilbert's since they typed it at the same time; weird stuff eh? I apologise for the spacing at the end; I would use the lines, but that would be space-consuming and crowded.)<em>

_Go for chat chapter! I've always wanted to do an online chat chapter for some reason (maybe I'm just strange that way?) I got lazy in this chapter actually (my lazy being me too lazy to actually make it like an "actual chat" with the abbreviations and such…but then again, I have to actually force myself to spell things those way whenever I chat, so it's sort of justified…) Failed usernames are failed usernames. Anyways, the school chat uses the country they are representing as that person's username, which is why Gilbert's username would be Prussia. The ones that say chat room means that they are using a different chat, and the name of the chat room is their team name._

_I took the emoticons from what people made up for that character, but I had to tweak some (e.g., Lovino's, Francis's, Alfred's since FF doesn't show the signs. Also, Matthew's emoticon is Alfred's original one since I think it suits him more than Alfred) and I had to make up some (Romania, which is pretty much Denmark without the axe, and Bulgaria, which is Antonio without the asterisks) so they aren't mine._

_In all honesty, I haven't thought of what they had bet against or the location of the field trip, but I will sometime XD  
><em>

(Took this off of Google Translate, so correct me if I'm wrong! Anyways, Francis uses so much French because of how he uses it a lot in the anime…or at least, in my opinion he does.)

Tres inhabituel (French)- Very unusual

Oui (French)- Yes

Attendez une minute (French)- Wait a minute

Mon petit Canadien (French)- My little Canadian

Questi idioti (Italian)- Those idiots

Prietenii mei (Romanian)- My friends


	7. With Friends Like These

_Warning: This is severely longer than the others. You have been warned._

* * *

><p>"Mommy, why are those people hiding behind those bushes?"<p>

"Just ignore them Billy; we don't want you ending up that way..."

Five teens were hiding behind a bush, each of them turned to the direction of two teens near the attraction booths. It was a warm day, the sun hiding behind puffy white clouds. The amusement park was crowded with men, children, and women alike, although it was significantly less than what the amusement park normally received. There were a plethora of noises, some cheering each other on, some screaming from the roller coasters, and some from just casual chatting.

"Remind me again why we have to hide behind a bush," Damyan was wearing a comfortable olive green jacket over a black vest and white collared shirt. He was crouched on the far end of the bush, his dark jeans crinkled and his rubber shoes coated with dirt. "We could just blend in with the crowd and follow them that way."

"Nonsense," Arthur was wearing a blue shirt with the Union Flag printed on it, a red checkered handkerchief tied around his neck, the material hanging in front of his shirt, and blue jeans with brown loafers. He was crouched beside Alfred, his elbow poking the other's arm. "Hiding behind a bush is a brilliant cover; who in their right mind would pay attention to a bush?"

"Passerby children and their mothers," Nicolae was wearing a large black trench coat with matching pants and knee-high boots. A small top hat of the same color lay on the left side of his head, the hat managing to stay in place without falling. He was on Damyan's left side, although he was a considerable distance away from him, almost as if he was avoiding close contact with the other. He turned to Arthur, his tone still teasing. "Unless you're suggesting that children and their mothers are 'not in their right mind'?"

Arthur gave him a critical look. "Who asked you?"

Nicolae shrugged, his tone still light. "Hey, you could've just _said_ that it was a rhetorical question, but then again, that defeats the purpose."

"Guys, we have to stay on task," Matthew was wearing a simple red hoodie and jeans, the Canadian flag imprinted as an emblem in front of the hoodie. He was situated in between Arthur and Nicolae, Kumajirou happily dozing on a basket strapped to his back. "Honestly, we get off task way too many times..."

"Matthew's right," Alfred was wearing a dark brown leather jacket over a checkered brown hoodie with a white shirt saying "Who's your Hero?" under that. A golden tag dangled on his neck, the material going past his collar bone. Dark blue jeans and black rubber shoes finished the look. "OK, let's start! Matthew, you're my back up! Damyan, Nicolae, you two are also my back up! Artie, you get the oh-so-important job of being my back up!"

"And what, pray tell, would you be doing?" Arthur spoke like a man who resigned to his fate and had grudgingly decided to face it.

"I'll be the hero of course!" Alfred burst into raucous laughter, causing passers-bys to stare at him. He calmed down after a while and checked on Lovino and Antonio, who were playing in one of those "hit the bottle" booths. Lovino was wearing a white and azure blue checkered jacket over a white shirt, wearing simple blue jeans and brown loafers as well. Antonio was also wearing blue, wearing a federal blue jacket with buttons instead of zippers and dark blue jeans. Under the jacket, he wore a white shirt and a tomato shaped necklace, a tag next to the tomato. Antonio was the one trying to hit the bottle, with Lovino trying to seem as if he wasn't interested; in short, they didn't notice anything. Alfred sighed in relief. "All joking aside, here are you guys' _real_ positions."

He gathered them together in a circle, his normal happy-go-lucky blue eyes suddenly serious. "Nicolae," He turned to him, his voice grave. "You have the job of spying on our opponents and telling us what they're up to. I don't know how, but you always know what people are doing. It's sort of creepy actually, almost like you have supernatural powers to spy on people..." Alfred shook his head and then turned to Damyan. "Damyan, you're with me on foiling those two's plans and counterattacks. Knowing them, they probably know that we'll try to stop them, and they're right; the difference is, we have to succeed," Finally, Alfred turned to Matthew and Arthur, who had been listening intently to what Alfred had been saying. "Since you're the best when it comes to romance, you're in charge of getting them together Matthew. Arthur, you'll be his back-up, since you're the next most romantic person here next to me, and I'm already helping Damyan."

"Hey! If you're having Arthur back up Matthew because he's a romanticist, why didn't you choose me for that job?" Nicolae asked indignantly. "I'm every bit as romantic as Arthur!"

"I tossed a coin to see who gets which position, since you and Arthur fit both requirements for both jobs," Alfred answered with a grin, all serious demeanor gone. "You're both good at spying, and you're both suckers for romance, so a coin toss was the only way to decide who got which job."

"I am not a 'sucker for romance'! What make you think I am? !" Arthur demanded, his cheeks flushed a cherry red. Everyone looked at him as if he just said that he was a purple elephant.

"Arthur, _everyone_ here knows that the books you borrow from me are romance books," Nicolae cracked a smile, showing his amazingly sharp teeth. "Plus, you're the poetry and literature nut of the group, so that makes you the romanticist."

"What kind of logic is tha-?"

"Guys!" They all turned to the direction of Damyan's voice, who was looking at Lovino's and Antonio's direction. "They're going to another booth!"

"Alright then!" Alfred stood up, his figure looming over them all. "Everyone OK with their positions?" Everyone nodded their heads, with the exception of Damyan, who had shaken his in what most people would take as "no". "Alright! Remember Matthew's plan; we have to get them in the Ferris Wheel! I still don't get why, but my brother says that it's the most romantic place in an amusement park, so we're just going by what he says!"

Alfred took out a walkie-talkie strapped to his jeans. "Everyone has theirs?" They all showed him their walkie-talkies, taking it off from the strap tied around their pants. "Good! Then..." He pumped up a fist in the air.

"Let's do this!"

* * *

><p>"So Francis, do you see any of our competition?"<p>

Gilbert and Francis were a few yards behind Antonio and Lovino, each one close to a crowd in case either of them looked back. Gilbert wore a Prussian blue jacket over a black shirt with "Deutscher Orden" (German Order) written on red letters with a loose, checkered red scarf tied around his neck, his iron cross necklace under that scarf. He wore ripped jeans with black boots, his footsteps barely making a sound despite the heavy footwear, although it was admittedly noisy.

"Don't pester me now, Gilbert, I'm trying to find an opening," Francis was dressed surprisingly simple; he only wore a royal purple, V-neck long-sleeved shirt with black skinny jeans. He claimed that he didn't dress out because it would "distract" Lovino and Antonio from each other, but Gilbert knew it was because he had woken up late today. "And isn't that your job?"

"I can't do everything! There's only so much awesome to pass around..." Gilbert stroked the little chick on his shoulder, his eyes still on their target. He watched Lovino stop in front of a booth, almost stopping as well. "Is Lovino going to a shooting booth? Is he even a good shot? !"

"Good idea Gilbert," Francis elbowed him out of the way, with Gilbert blending into a crowd a few feet behind him. Meanwhile, Francis had casually walked to Antonio, who had turned back to find Lovino once he realized he wasn't by his side.

"Francis!" Gilbert heard Antonio from where he was and could see the expression of surprise on his face. "What're you doing here? You said so yourself that you don't like booths...And have you seen Lovi? You haven't done anything to him, have you?" A shadow flitted through his brilliant green eyes, causing Francis to gulp.

"_Mon ami_, I have done nothing to your little pet," he held his arms up in surrender. "After that talk of yours, I wouldn't dare to," Antonio still looked unconvinced, and Gilbert could see the panic in Francis's eyes. "As for the whereabouts of your precious little boyfriend, he's at the shooting booth over there," Francis hastily pointed a few feet behind them, where Lovino was looking at the toy rifle he was to shoot with. "Hm… doesn't that look too big?" The rifle was around the same length as Lovino's arm, if not a little bit bigger. "He won't be able to aim well if he can't even hold it up, poor boy..."

"Ah, you're right!" Antonio shot past him without a word. He went by to Lovino, going behind him and helping him hold the gun. Gilbert moved out of the crowd and next to Francis.

"Hey! I thought your plan was to get them both in the Ferris Wheel," Gilbert turned to the other two. "I don't get this love crap, but you said that the Ferris Wheel gave enough time for confessions and the like, so why do you bother trying to get them together in a shooting booth?"

Francis sighed and shook his head. "Gilbert, one does not immediately eat the main dish in a full course meal; they must go through the appetizers first." When Gilbert still didn't look like he understood, Francis sighed again. "Think of it like a love story; if both main characters are single, have opposite yet complimenting personalities, and can make a lot of UST, you don't get them together right away with no trouble- that would be a waste of story. You have to make the destined couple go through some trials first, such as having one of the two have an 'aloof' or 'irritable' front with a hidden 'love-struck' side that can only be triggered by that significant other; that type of person would regularly refuse his or her feelings for their significant other. In that case, it will take some time and well-timed events for that person to finally acknowledge their feelings," Francis gestured to Lovino, whose face was a magnificent shade of red when Antonio came by. "In this case, Lovino would be the one who is refusing his feelings for Antonio; for him to recognize it, we need to make him go through a series of romantic events for him to finally realize that what he feels for Antonio is love. If we try to get him to admit it too early, he'll just recede farther into denial and it will take another long series of romantic events for him to realize his feelings," Francis caught his breath. "Do you understand now, Gilbert, why we can't just have him go to the Ferris Wheel immediately?"

"Not at all," Gilbert grinned. "But, you _are_ the supposed master of romance, so I'll just take your word for it."

"You're hopeless," Francis chuckled beneath his breath. Francis looked back at their target, and was dismayed to see Lovino angrily shaking Antonio off, hearing Lovino's string of Italian curses even at their distance.

"Is he supposed to be doing that?" Gilbert leaned to Francis to ask him since a crowd had gathered around Lovino- who was expertly shooting the targets- and was cheering him on with a deafening roar.

"No," Francis dragged Gilbert away, sighing yet again. "This will be a _very_ long day if Lovino continues to act like this."

Gilbert burst into rowdy laughter. "Wait 'till we have to square off with our competitors; then the _real_ trouble begins!"

* * *

><p>"How'd you know that Lovino would reject Antonio, Nicolae?" Damyan's voice floated up through the walkie-talkie. Nicolae took it off his jacket pocket and clicked the button on the side to answer, looking ahead to make sure that Gilbert and Francis hadn't noticed him, both of which were tailing Lovino and Antonio.<p>

"_You've_ never played a shooting game with him before," He smiled as he remembered the last time he had fought against Lovino. "I figured that if he can shoot like a madman at weird gray aliens, he can shoot in real life, although he seemed sort of scared of them; who wouldn't? They were everywhere in that mansion, and that thing's neck is creepy... By the way…" Nicolae's voice dropped lower. "It was by no chance that Antonio went back to help Lovino; it may be the type of thing he would do, but he didn't even notice that Lovino had left his side until Francis talked to him."

"So you're saying that that whole shooting booth scene was that frog's doing," It was Arthur's voice this time, sounding wholly disdainful in contrast to Damyan's lighthearted voice.

"Yep," Nicolae confirmed, blending in the crowd when he saw Gilbert looking back. "Their little tactic failed, but they had the first move and in chess, the ones with the first move usually have a higher chance of winning."

"I have no idea how you're tying this in with chess, but Matthew has an idea," Arthur replied. Nicolae heard the shuffling on the other side of the walkie-talkie.

"Thanks Arthur," Matthew's voice was barely louder than the static. "By what you said, they're going to get Antonio and Lovino to go through some 'warm-ups' before they try to bring them to the Ferris Wheel. Well, two can play at that game. By any chance, are we near that haunted house of yours?"

"H-haunted house?" Alfred's voice was shaking, cutting off Matthew. "W-what's a haunted house s-still doing here? I-it's not even H-Halloween!"

"I helped with the haunted house last Halloween," Nicolae kept his voice casual even though he was struggling to hide his laughter. "It was so popular that they've kept it, although there's talk that they might take it down on Halloween since it's _too_ scary…" He smiled. "Why, are you sca~red Alfred?"

"Scared? The hero isn't s-scared of anything!" If his voice hadn't wavered, it would have been enough to convince Nicolae. However…

"Then go try it out! You've never been there before, right?" No answer. "I'm sure the ghosts will like to meet you! Careful though…" Nicolae's grin reached to his ears. "They're still not used to this world, so they may be a bit…_lively_, eh?"

"Nicolae, stop it already," Matthew scolded from the other line, effectively cutting Alfred's scream short. "You know Alfred hates ghosts. And anyways, those are fake ghosts, so that will fool no one."

Nicolae shrugged despite knowing that no one could see him. "Hey, did I ever say they were _fake_? Anyways, what do you want the Haunted House for? They already saw our original plan, so we can't lock them in a room like what we first thought of…"

"Just lead them in the Haunted House," Matthew insisted. "I have a plan."

"A plan? What are you-? Oh, I see now," Nicolae nodded in approval. "Mind if I add a few things in the mix?"

"Sure thing; just get them in that house."

"Alright-y then," He swerved out of the crowd, watching through the corner of his eye to see if Gilbert and Francis were looking. Luckily, the little bird on Gilbert's shoulder seemed to be having a panic attack when a child was trying to grab it, so they were thoroughly distracted. Nicolae quickly walked to where Antonio and Lovino where, both of whom were looking at some masks on a booth.

"Lovino! What are you doing here?" They both jumped and looked back at Nicolae, Lovino dropping the mask he was holding to the floor.

"Shit!" He bent down to pick up the mask, placing it back on its place once it was off the ground. "The fuck did you do that for, Nicolae?"

"Does it matter?" Nicolae tilted his head and smiled. "So you like masks, huh? Well, they have better ones at that Haunted House over there!" He jerked his head to the direction of a house to their northeast. It was a creaky, wooden house the color of a faded eggplant, some leafless trees scattered around its forlorn backyard. The house emitted a dark aura, almost as if its own personal storm was gathering above it. Despite its somewhat off-putting appearance, a line was formed on the cracked sidewalk, the line going past the backyard. "It might be a long wait, but I assure you, the masks of the monsters are realistic enough that it's like they're the real thing."

"Yeah right," Lovino scoffed, although there was a look in his brown eyes that was similar to Alfred's tone whenever the word "ghost" was mentioned. "A stupid mask can't be _that_ convincing."

"Maybe," Nicolae placed his hand on Lovino's head and hummed. "Or maybe not~"

"What the hell are you doing?" Lovino turned red as he tried to batter Nicolae's hand of his head but failed. "Don't touch me! I _hate_ it when people touch me! As for that Haunted House, no way!"

"You're not scared, are you?" Nicolae teased, patting his head.

"O-of course not! Who'd be scared of s-stupid haunted house?" Lovino went redder. "And let go of me already!"

"Only if you're willing to go to that Haunted House," Nicolae ruffled his hair. "Trust me, you should."

"Alright then," both boys turned to Antonio, who had been silently standing next to Lovino the whole time. He had a strange look in his eyes. "We can go, right Lovi? Good!" He grabbed Lovino by the arm and marched on to the Haunted House, ignoring Lovino's curses the whole way. Nicolae watched them go, picking up his walkie-talkie with the hand he had patted Lovino's head with.

"The tomatoes are in the basket, over."

'

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Screams were heard everywhere inside the Haunted House. There weren't any guides; you just walked through the house and experienced its horrors. At the moment, Gilbert and Francis were walking in the middle of a candlelit hallway. They could barely see around them; the candles were so close to burning out that they were barely fit to be stubs. Gilbert could faintly see the white walls of the corridor despite its worn-out and cracked appearance, and with the way the halls looked, he was expecting cockroaches to come out anytime now. Ahead of them were Lovino and Antonio, although neither had bothered to look behind them…not that Gilbert could blame them.

"Wow, this isn't half bad," Gilbert whistled lowly. "Although the décor is horrible and half- assed, it doesn't distract you from the monsters. Who knew that mutated dogs could look so horrible? It looks like they were infected by some virus or something…" He shuddered slightly, remembering that he wanted to hug the dogs when he first saw them…and then he got a closer look at them. "That's not even starting with the ghosts…Blue flames have never looked so eerie…I'm pretty sure they were trying to talk to me too…Of course, I'm fearless, so nothing has scared me so far."

"Will you shut up already?" Francis whispered. "I'd rather not attract any more monsters to us…And Antonio and Lovino will hear you!"

"Who cares? Lovino's too busy shaking in his boots to listen to us! Just look at him!" Gilbert chuckled as he looked ahead to Lovino, who was shaking slightly despite trying to keep up a tough façade. "I wonder why Nicolae and the others made them go in a haunted house? There's nothing romantic about haunted houses."

Francis _tsked_. "Honestly, are you _this_ ignorant about love? I must say, _Mathieu_ is better than I expected, playing the 'scared' ploy…"

"What is that, the wounded gazelle gambit? Sure sounds like it," They passed by a library, something purple flashing by to follow another pair.

"What's that? No, never mind," Francis said quickly when Gilbert actually looked like he was actually going to explain. "The 'scared' ploy is basically when you have a person in the couple so scared that they end up clinging onto their partner. It's usually effective in places like haunted houses, caves, horror movies and the likes."

"Well, so far their plan is failing; Feli's brother dearest may be scared, but so far, he refuses to cling onto Antonio…" Gilbert cracked his signature grin. "Why don't we just scare them ourselves? That should speed things up."

"Alright then," Francis's voice was approving. "You go do that…I'm afraid my beautiful looks would only dazzle them, not scare them."

"I honestly don't get what's on your mind, Franny old buddy," Gilbert chuckled again and then crept silently forward, his boots not making a sound on the creaky wooden floor. He was only a few feet behind Antonio and Lovino when something stopped him.

"SNEAK ATTACK!"

"What the-?" Gilbert turned to the direction of the voice, only to have a grey humanoid hurled at him. The alien was at least half his size and resembled a small, bald child, except it had enlarged inky black eyes. "It's that alien from that game! Get it off of me!" Gilbert fell back on his butt, trying to get the black eyed alien off him.

"No way! Don't you know your aliens? That's obviously Tony!" Alfred's voice floated up from somewhere unknown.

"I don't care what his fucking name is, get him off of me!"

"You _sure_ about that? There are much worse thsings than Tony here…"

"GET HIM OFF!" Gilbert lifted Tony momentarily off of him, only for the alien to fall back at him while screaming something illegible.

"Alright then," Gilbert could tell by the tone of his voice that Alfred was shrugging his shoulders. Sure enough, Tony got off of Gilbert. He skittered out of the hallway, leaving a string of curses that made Lovino sound like a priest. "Don't say I didn't warn you though."

"Are you okay Gilbert?" Francis helped him up, smiling so wide it looked like it hurt. "I thought you said you were fearless."

"I _am_ fearless," Gilbert all but snarled. "_You've _just never seen how scary aliens can be; how would you like it if you were suddenly attacked by an alien in an unknown house?"

"I'll tell you when I am," Francis smirked, but the expression fell immediately. "But that distraction separated us from Antonio and Lovino; I have no idea if they noticed us, but they're gone now and I don't know where they went," they started walking through the corridor again. "By the way, what do you think Alfred meant by 'Don't say that I didn't warn you'?"

"I don't know but- Hey, did you hear something?" Gilbert stopped, putting a hand on his ear as a third footstep was heard right after he stopped walking. "There it is again."

"Just what do you think it i-?" Francis, whom had kept on walking, had looked back. He immediately screamed. "What is that? !"

"What's wha-?" Gilbert looked back, only to find himself with a grown-up version of Tony with a much longer neck…except this one, he actually recognized. "_Now _it's that alien from that game! Retreat!" He grabbed Francis's hand and started to run. Eventually, they ran past Antonio and Lovino, with Antonio being right next into an open door leading into a dining room with a fireplace that had no fire.

"Francis? Gilbert? What are you doing he-?"

"CHIGI!" Lovino, who had looked behind them, suddenly grabbed Antonio, pushing the latter inside the open door. Antonio fell back harshly, and when his head cleared up, he found Lovino on top of him. Lovino was shaking as he hugged him, his head on his chest. "What the hell _was_ that thing? It looked like that thing from this game I played with Nicolae!"

"Shh…It's okay Lovi," Antonio ran his hand through Lovino's hair- one of his many ways of comforting a person. "It's alright, it won't hurt you…After all, you have me, right?"

"Shut up…" Lovino hugged him tighter, his face as red as a tomato. "Has it gone yet?" He asked after a while.

Antonio looked past Lovino and saw that the hallway was empty. "The coast is clear for now, but it might come back…"

"Shit…" Lovino swore under his breath. "Can we stay like this then? I'd rather not have it find me… I'm already tired from running away when I heard that 'Sneak attack!', so I'm not taking any more chances at being attacked!"

"You can do whatever you want Lovi…" Antonio cracked a grin as Lovino sighed in relief. Antonio then looked up, his eyes bright.

"_Gracias por esta oportunidad (Thank you for this opportunity); Yo sabía que algo así iba a suceder (I knew something like this would happen)!_" He whispered, running his hand yet again through Lovino's hair.

* * *

><p>Antonio and Lovino exited the Haunted House, going past some ladies wearing witch costumes telling them to "Come by again!" Lovino was clutching Antonio's arm, but had immediately let go once they were outside.<p>

"Aw, why'd you let go Lovi?" Antonio turned to him, letting his now abandoned arm fall to his side. "I liked having you hold my arm…although you hugging me is even better~"

"Shut up!" Lovino walked faster to try to hide his blushing face. It didn't work, seeing as Antonio caught up to him almost immediately.

"But Lovi~"

"I said shut up!" The surroundings around them morphed from leafless trees and cracked ground into painted cement and food booths- the food court. "That was a one-time thing only, and we must _never_ talk about that again, capisce?"

"But didn't you like it Lovi?" Antonio grabbed Lovino's arm, which he immediately threw off.

"N-no!" Lovino's face was redder than a desert. "Why would I have liked that? !" He walked away as fast as he can. Antonio followed him, screaming "Wait up!" Meanwhile, Arthur and Matthew were watching them from behind a bush near a food booth selling hot dogs, which was a bit ways away from the main courtyard of the food court.

"Good job Nicolae," Arthur chuckled into the walkie-talkie. "Where'd you get the alien?"

"I just happened to know someone appropriate for the current situation," Nicolae replied, sounding quite pleased with himself. "Ivan is one of the tallest people I know next to Berwald, and since I don't know Berwald as well, I went with Ivan. Besides, he's used to dressing up; he makes a _very_ convincing panda, you know. Too bad I owe him now…By the way, I haven't heard you praise your boyfriend yet; _he's_ the one who stopped Gilbert from scaring Lovino."

"Yeah Arthur, it's harder than you think to bring Tony over here," Alfred's voice came out. "He was busy with Ph*toshop when I called him, but since he was already done, he could come over. So where's your gratitude?"

"You git," Arthur smiled. "I suppose you _did_ do a good jo- Hey, what is Francis doing over there?" Said Frenchman was at a nearby food booth; instead of being at the line that was formed at the front, he was at the back of the booth. He was talking to the lady in charge of the food booth, and Arthur could see that he was flirting successfully. The lady went back into the food booth, only to emerge later with a smoothie with two straws in it.

"Don't tell me he's planning to…" Matthew's eyes widened beside Arthur as Francis accepted the smoothie from the lady, kissing her hand in gratitude. She blushed then went back inside the food booth, presumably to get back to work. Meanwhile, Francis was heading towards the direction of Antonio and Lovino, who had seated themselves in the middle of the food court at a small table. Matthew took out his walkie-talkie. "Somebody get that smoothie from him!"

It happened in a blur. Before Francis could reach the table, a black shadow passed in front of him. When it was gone, Francis was left with an empty hand and an expression of disbelief on his face. To make things worse for him, Damyan and Alfred appeared near him, managing to herd him out of the way.

Matthew blinked. "I didn't need Francis out of the picture, but I suppose that could work, eh?"

"I suppose."

Both boys jumped back to see Nicolae standing over them both, the stolen smoothie in his hand. "Want it? I think it's mango flavored," he said, tapping the glass filled with the frothy, orange-yellow liquid.

"Thanks Nicolae," Matthew stood up and took the drink from him. "Arthur, can you check up on Alfred and the others? I'm worried about what they're doing to Francis…"

"Sure thing," Arthur stood up and dusted his backside. "Although knowing them, they're probably just holding him behind some bush or some haystack or something like that like they do in those videogames," He left before they could comment, muttering something about "Idiots" and "Idiots playing videogames".

"So…" Nicolae turned to Matthew, disturbing the silence that had come after Arthur's exit. "Are you going to go or what?"

"I am, but before that…" Matthew looked past Nicolae. "Can you go over and check the Ferris Wheel? It's near here and I think Lovino is close to cracking."

"Alright," Nicolae started to walk towards the direction of the Ferris Wheel. After a few feet, he looked back. "Better hurry up with that smoothie, Mattie; who knows how long until Francis gets loose."

"Please," Matthew almost snorted. "If Gilbert's the brawns, Francis is definitely the beauty; I doubt he can get free of Damyan, let alone Alfred. But if you're still worried, tell Arthur if the Ferris Wheel is empty enough instead of me if I'm somehow not available at that moment."

"Alright then," Nicolae nodded. "You shouldn't jinx yourself though; something tells me that Francis will get free and mess with you."

"You don't think Alfred and Damyan can keep him away for long enough?"

"I don't know; what I _do_ know is that I haven't seen Gilbert, and that can't be good."

'

"Alfred, Damyan, where are you guys?"

Alfred took his walkie-talkie. "Hey Artie! We're behind the bush and the trashcan near that food booth with the smoothies. Why, are you looking for us?"

"Yeah, Matthew's worried about what you're doing to him."

"Don't worry; we're taking good care of him!" Alfred placed the walkie-talkie away then turned to Damyan. "Is he struggling?"

Damyan, who was holding Francis's hands together, used a hand to poke Francis. "I think he fainted when he saw that we were placing him near a trashcan…Guess he still remembers that incident with Arthur, eh?"

"I suppose so; and to think that Arthur's a bookworm…He's stronger than you think!" Alfred grinned then sat back down. "What should we do with him? It's not like we can-"

"SNEAK ATTACK!"

"It's not a sneak attack if you say it out lou- WHAT THE HECK? !"

Alfred ducked as Gilbert's pet bird flew over to where his head previously was. The bird kept going until it hit Damyan, causing him to fall back and let go of Francis. Francis immediately opened his eyes and jumped up.

"I look forward to seeing you lose that bet~!" Francis smirked and then ran off with Gilbert's pet chick in his arms.

"Darn!" Alfred sat back up and snapped his fingers across his chest. "He used my own method against me!"

"Look on the bright side," Damyan sighed and rubbed his forehead, the place where the chick had hit him. "_You_ managed to not get hit; that thing may just be a ball of fluff, but it's lethal!"

"What's with all this ruckus? !" Arthur emerged from the bushes, leaves sticking all around him. "I got here as fast as I can," He explained, brushing the leaves off his body. "Hey, where'd that frog go? I thought you two were keeping him away from Matthew and the others."

"We tried to," Alfred looked down dejectedly. "But then Gilbird attacked us and he slipped out of our reaches."

"You got scared of a bird that's smaller than your fist?" Arthur's voice was filled with the most utmost disbelief. Alfred looked at him sharply.

"Small birds are dangerous, Artie! They can decimate whole forts! Hell, some can even explode on impact! That's why the pigs hate them!" Alfred's eyes had an intense look on it. "Tiny yellow birds are no laughing matter, Artie, trust me on this!"

Arthur shook his head. "Honestly, I don't get you sometimes," he sighed. "Oh well, no point moping around for now. Let's just hope that Matthew got his chance and succeeded."

'

"Matthew, what are you doing here?"

Matthew smiled as Lovino looked up to him, a look of bewilderment on his face. "I was just passing by, that's all."

"Passing by?" Suspicion was written everywhere on Lovino's face. "You mean just like how Francis and Nicolae did just a while a-"

"Hey, what's that on your hands?" Antonio pointed to the drink on his hands. "How come you have two straws on it? Are you on a date too, Matthew?"

Matthew shook his head. "Nah, I just ordered this drink just now. I didn't notice it had two straws until now, so I'm not sure what to do with it…"

"What flavor is it?"

"Mango, why?" Matthew felt like smiling more. Was Antonio going to catch the bait?

"Ah, mango's a nice flavor!" Antonio brightened then turned to Lovino. "Have you ever tasted mangoes before, Lovi? They're good!"

"Don't want to," Lovino pouted and looked away. Antonio looked at him in shock.

"What? ! You have to taste it then!" Antonio whipped around to face Matthew. "Can I have your smoothie? It's fine if you don't, but seeing as you have one now…"

"Feel free," Matthew placed the drink in the middle of the table. "Although I only have one, so I don't have one for the both of you…"

"It's OK!" Antonio smiled widely. "There are two straws on this one, right? I can just share this with Lovi!"

"_What?_" Lovino went to a fiery crimson. "Hell if I'm sharing a drink with you! Who in their right mind wou-?"

"_Matthew, mon précieux petit Canadienne! (Matthew, my precious little Canadian!)_"

_Shoot. So close too…_

Matthew turned around with a forced smile. "Francis, what are you doing here? I thought you were busy…"

Francis winked at him. "For you, my time is always free," Matthew cringed inwardly; he always found it strange whenever Francis flirted with him. "Oh my, what is this?" Francis grabbed the smoothie off the table. "Oh this won't do…Antonio, old buddy, I hope you don't mind me taking your drink. As you can see, the line is terribly long," Francis gestured to the admittedly long line at the smoothie booth. "And I don't want to leave my date for too long~"

"Date?" All three of them spoke simultaneously.

"What date? You never told me you had a date today!" Antonio exclaimed.

"That's because I didn't want to distract you from your date with Lovino," Francis explained. He turned to Matthew. "Now then, _Mathieu,_ shall we get back to our date?"

"What?" What was he playing at? "We're not on a date!"

"Ah, you're so cute when you're in denial," Matthew blushed; today was not going as well as he thought. Francis turned back to Lovino and Antonio. "So if you will excuse us, we must get back on our date. However, I will not leave without repaying you for this delectable drink."

Francis took out the hand he was keeping behind his back. When he brought his hand out, a vanilla ice cream crepe with chocolate fudge was held in his hand. "I managed to charm the lady in charge for a free crepe. I _was_ planning to share this crepe with Matthew, but you two are without anything to eat, and since the lines are far too long," he gestured to the numerous lines scattered between the food booths. "I'll just have to make do with the mango smoothie my dear _date_ got for us," He finished, placing great emphasis on the word "date".

"Thanks Francis!" Antonio got the crepe off Francis's hands. He immediately offered it to Lovino. "Here, have a taste Lovi!"

"Alright," Even Matthew was surprised to see that he had agreed. Lovino blushed right afterwards. "What? It'd be a waste _not_ to eat it," Lovino leaned in and took a bite, his eyes widening. "It's really sweet!"

"It is?" Antonio took a bite out of the crepe from the same side Lovino had bitten it. "Huh, it really _is_ sweet!" He turned back to Lovino, who had gone even redder. "What's the matter Lovi? All I did was take a bite…"

"You. Are. An. IDIOT!" Lovino cried out, refusing to look at Antonio and the crepe.

"My work here is done," Francis said triumphantly. "Come on Matthew, let's not disturb the happy couple~" He slung a hand across Matthew's back and onto his shoulder and then herded him out of the way as Lovino exclaimed "WE'RE NOT A COUPLE!"

"I believe we got that point," Francis smirked after they were a considerable distance away. He removed his hand off of Matthew and stopped to look at him. "Although I was surprised you actually took the bait of getting that smoothie; I must give Gilbert credit, he's smarter than you think," his smirk widened. "Admit it, we are going to win this bet."

"So you planned for us to take the smoothie so that you could give them a crepe?" Matthew mused out loud. "Good plan, but there's still the final stretch; don't count your chickens before the egg has hatched, we can still win."

"We'll see Matthew," Francis was still smirking. "We'll see."

'

"I think they're up to something."

Antonio looked at Lovino, who had just taken a bite off of the crepe. "What are you talking about?"

Lovino handed the crepe back to Antonio, who took a bite off it as well. "Don't you think it's weird that we keep running into either my friends or your friends? And that whenever they come, something embarrassing happens?"

"I don't know about embarrassing," Antonio started out thoughtfully. "But I certainly had fun. After all, Lovi did some stuff today that he would never have done otherwise."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lovino hoped he wasn't blushing this time; he was doing it far too many times today. "But still, it's pretty weird that-"

"Lovino!"

Lovino turned to see Arthur walking towards them. "OK, this is too coincidental to be an actual coincidence."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Arthur looked a bit cross. "By the way, have you seen my idiot of a boyfriend? He said something about getting hamburgers, and he ran off before I could stop him."

"Why would we care what happened to your boyfriend?" Antonio's voice was uncharacteristically cold. "We're busy in our own date."

"I wasn't asking you Carriedo," Arthur's voice was equally as cold. Lovino blinked: What was up with those two? Lovino already knew that Arthur didn't like Antonio, but why? "And if you two are in a date, why aren't you at the Ferris Wheel yet? Aren't all couples supposed to go there if they're in an amusement park?"

"Is that a challenge, Kirkland?" Antonio stood up and glared at the other. Lovino gulped; what happened to the lovable idiot he was before? It was times like this that reminded Lovino that Antonio was older than him. "Alright then, challenge accepted. Let's go Lovi~!" Antonio beamed at him, all sense of acrimony gone.

"What? I suppose it wouldn't be too bad…" If going along with Antonio's idiotic decisions would get him the way he was before, then Lovino was all for embarrassing himself. It didn't mean that he had to like it…N-not that he even liked it in the first place!

"Alright then," Was that triumph in Arthur's face? "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find that idiot before he stuffs himself silly," Arthur walked away, definitely triumph in his gait.

"Come on Lovi, let's go!" Antonio grabbed his arm, that charmi- stupid grin of his plastered on his face.

Yup, Lovino _definitely_ wouldn't enjoy this…

…Kind of.

* * *

><p>"Look Lovi, I can see Feli and Ludwig from here!"<p>

Lovino scowled. They were sitting in a small silver carriage, the door on Lovino's right side and a large window on his left. In front of him sat Antonio, whose face and hands were glued to the window. They were the only two in the carriage, although Lovino refused to sit next to Antonio. "What's Feliciano doing with that German?"

"Maybe they're on a date like us?" Antonio suggested, still looking out the window. "I wonder if they're going out already? Ludwig _did_ say that he liked Feli."

"Ha! As if I'd let that potato bastard date my brother," Lovino paused, just registering what Antonio had just said. "And we're not on a date!"

"Huh? !" Antonio looked at him in disbelief. "But how come you never said it wasn't a date whenever I or some other person said it?"

"Because I-!" Lovino hesitated. Why _didn't_ he deny it at those times? "Well, I…uh…"

"Lovi," Antonio looked at him intently. "What did you think we were doing this whole time?"

"I don't know," He looked away from him. "Just don't ask me about it! And if you haven't noticed, our friends kept interrupting us, so it doesn't count as a date!"

"Yeah, but our friends were trying to get us together this whole time," Antonio replied matter-of-factly.

Lovino looked at him incredulously. "_What?_ What makes you think that? !"

Antonio scoffed. "Please, they couldn't be more obvious even if they announced it to the whole world; the only reason I didn't stop them was because we were working for the same reasons."

"The same reasons?"

"_Si_. I wanted to show Lovi a good time, and they helped me do that, if not realizing that I knew about them trying to get us together in the first place."

Lovino didn't know how to reply. Was he the only one who didn't know about this? Quite frankly, that was pathetic. He sighed; the only thing he didn't get was _why_ they were trying to get him and Antonio together. There was no denying that Antonio felt…_something_ towards him, but Lovino didn't even like Antonio that way…Did he? "Aren't you mad that they were interfering?" Lovino _had_ to change the subject fast; if his thoughts kept going in that direction, then…then…

"Not at all," Lovino could hear Antonio shrug. "Do you want to know why, Lovi?"

"Not really." _Please let this ride end already._ He begged silently, even though he knew it was futile to do so; after all, the ride was nowhere close to being over. _Just get Antonio away from me already; isn't it enough that I spent the whole day with him? I just want this over and done with already._ Something in him protested, but Lovino wasn't willing to listen to it.

"Hey Lovi."

Lovino looked back at Antonio, who was still looking at him with that same, intent look on his face. "Have you noticed that I haven't said a poem this whole time?" He had noticed, he just didn't want to point it out lest Antonio did any _more_ romantic things today. "Actually, I want to finish the one I told you last week…You know, the alphabet poem."

"No way," _Finally_, more familiar territory! "You stopped at 'I' last time; you still have 17 more letters to go."

"Good point Lovi," Was Antonio going to back out on saying a poem? _What's up with him today?_ Lovino thought._ Honestly, this is too much… _"At least let me get to T."

"What's so special about T?" _Please don't be romantic! ! ! I've had enough of romance for today!_ Again, something in him protested, but Lovino was _not_ in the mood to be romanced by Antonio…or so he told himself.

"This," Antonio leaned forward and took his hand. "_T_ _e amo, mi tomate."_

Lovino froze. _So much for not romantic..._ "_Te amo…_ 'I love you'?"

"_Si,_" Antonio smiled at him yet again. "The question is…" He let go of his hand. "Do you love me back?"

Lovino felt like he couldn't breathe. Was it always this hot in here? And why was his heart beating so fast? "I…" He stopped; _did_ he love Antonio? There was no arguing that he didn't not love Antonio… "I…"

Silence unfolded between them as Lovino found that he couldn't answer. He didn't _hate_ Antonio, but to say that he loved him was much too personal for him...He wished that he could just run away from this moment, just like he did in all the other times he found himself confronted with Antonio's affection for him.

Antonio sighed. "_Lo siento_ Lovi, I didn't mean to put you in an uncomfortable position; if you hate me, just say so."

_Hate you? How could I _ever_ hate you?_

"I don't hate you," Lovino mumbled. He covered his mouth immediately after that. "Shit, I didn't need to say that!" Despite having a hand on his mouth, Lovino spoke quite clearly. "Just ignore what I said!"

"Why, what did you say?" Lovino felt a pang of disappointment; wasn't it that in situations such as this, Antonio was supposed to hear him no matter how incomprehensible he was? Either way, Lovino didn't answer; he didn't want to reveal any more than he should, especially since it was too much of a personal topic for Lovino to handle.

Antonio sighed again at Lovino's silence. "Just forget it. Let's just enjoy the ride, _si_?"

Silence yet again. Antonio looked out the window, his head on his hands. Lovino fidgeted uncomfortably. He didn't like seeing Antonio this sad; it was much too out of character for him.

"I…" Antonio looked at him hopefully. "I…"

"You…?"

Lovino bit his lip and didn't reply. _Again._ Why couldn't he just spit it out?

"Hey Lovi," Lovino looked up at him and was surprised to find _hesitancy_ in Antonio's expression. "Do you like me? It doesn't have to be love, but…do you?"

"Uh…" _Shit, just get me out of this ride already! _ "No…" It hurt to lie, but lying was _much_ easier than admitting to the truth.

More silence. Finally, Antonio spoke up again. "How honest are you with your feelings right now?"

"What?" _What kind of question was that?_

Antonio leaned back on his seat. "It's just that I can't believe that you _don't_ like me. I have a feeling that if you didn't like me, you wouldn't be doing all of this stuff in the first place. I mean, you wouldn't have agreed to walk with me if you didn't like me…neither would you have hugged me, or shared a crepe with me, or practically agreed to be alone with me when you said you'd come with me to the Ferris Wheel."

"I…That's…uh…" What was wrong with him today? He wasn't normally this tongue-tied around Antonio…but then again, this was _Antonio_ he was talking about. _Anything_ he did to him always left him flustered. "Right. Those are all right."

"Then if that's so, how do you feel about me? Actually, let me make this easier," Antonio looked at him gently. "Do you like or do you hate me?"

How was he supposed to answer that? He wished that _something _would interrupt them now. _Where are those idiots when you need them? _Lovino took a deep breath; there was no escape this time. "Neither; if I hated you, I wouldn't be around you this much and I would have said so. So I…"

"So you…?"

_Even _more _silence._ Just _why_ couldn't he admit that he lo-

"-vi?" Antonio broke him out of his thoughts. "Lovi, are you okay? If you're uncomfortable, just tell me and I'll stop."

"No, it's fine," Lovino took another deep breath. Just what did he almost think? "Really, it is."

"Alright then," Antonio looked slightly relieved. Neither of them said anything after that; they just stayed the way they were, Antonio looking at him with his gentle green eyes, Lovino looking anywhere _but_ at Antonio. "Hey Lovi."

"What is it this time?" Lovino tried to look directly at Antonio, but ended up just looking at the floor.

"You look just like a tomato, all red like that~" Antonio chuckled. Lovino felt his face go on fire.

"Shut up! How come you keep comparing me with a tomato? !"

"Because tomatoes are my favorite fruit, and you're my most favorite person in the world," he answered simply. _Damn. _Lovino found himself envying Antonio's straight-forwardness. _How come he's so relaxed?_ "And when you look like a tomato, I can't help but want to kiss you…"

"Then why don't you?" _Shit. Why'd I say that? Not that I'd mind, but still…_

_ Wait._

_ Why _wouldn't_ I mind?_

Antonio looked at him, obviously stunned. "You'd actually let me? No offense Lovi, but you aren't exactly accepting of affectionate gestures, like that hug at the Haunted House…"

"That was a one-time thing!" Lovino took a deep breath. _Just calm down and say_ something. "Lucky for you, I'm out of my mind today, so just kiss me already dammit!" Not subtle in the least, but at least it got his point across.

Antonio looked at him for one more second then laughed, a sound that was akin to bells. "Alright then," He got off his seat and on Lovino's lap, causing Lovino to blush even more.

"What are you doing? !" Antonio replied with a look of surprise.

"It works better if I'm closer," He smiled and cupped his face in his hands, placing his forehead on his. "Are you sure you want me to kiss you? I'd hate to make you even more uncomfortable than you probably already are…"

"Do it before I start regretting my decision."

Antonio smiled again. "That's my Lovi."

"Just shut up already," _Damn heart, stop beating so fast! ! ! Although…_ Lovino closed his eyes as Antonio leaned in. _This isn't so bad...After all, I _do _lo-_

"Hey, did anything happen yet? !"

"GILBERT!"

Something snapped in Lovino. He pushed Antonio off and stood up, an arm covering his mouth. _Oh God, what did I almost _do? Lovino thought, his face impossibly red. _What did I almost let Antonio do? More importantly, what did I almost admit?_

Meanwhile, Gilbert- who had opened the door to the carriage, which had apparently finished its revolution- was promptly dog-piled to the floor by Nicolae, Damyan, Matthew, Arthur, Alfred, and even _Francis._

"Francis!" Gilbert exclaimed as he regained his breath. "I get everyone else, but why are _you_ on me? We're on the same team!"

"Gilbert, when you told me that you knew a way to prevent them from winning the bet, I didn't think you meant _this!_" Francis cried out. "Even _I_ cannot forgive such an act as this one!"

"What's going on? !" Lovino demanded, hoping to distract himself. "And what's this bet you guys are talking about?"

"Oh Lovino, hi…" Damyan smiled weakly from where he was on the pile (right under Nicolae if you're wondering). "Well…How do I put this…We kind of made a bet with Francis and Gilbert…"

"And what was this bet?" Lovino had a funny feeling he already knew.

"To, err…" Damyan's smile went even more sheepishly. " To see who gets you and Antonio together first…"

"And why," Lovino exhaled and inhaled, presumably to seem mad when he was actually just trying to catch his breath from his almost ki- _Don't think about it!_ "Would you bet on such a retarded thing such as that?"

"Because," it was Alfred who spoke up this time. "You like him don't you? Like, _like like_ him?"

"I-well, you see…" Lovino was pretty sure his face would stay permanently red from today. He looked at them, all of which were waiting for his answer. "Dammit, I DON'T LIKE ANTONIO THAT WAY!" Lovino ran past them, running past the line and the guy in charge, who was heading towards their carriage when he saw the dog-pile.

"Lovino!" All of his friends went after him, leaving Francis and Gilbert on the floor. Francis raised his head off the floor.

"Antonio, I'm sorry we didn't tell you about the bet. We hope you aren't mad," Francis was as sincere as he was scared; after something like this, Antonio was undoubtedly furious, and _nobody_ was safe when Antonio was mad.

Antonio, who was on the floor with a dazed expression, snapped out of it and turned to them slowly. "I'm not mad at you guys," he said finally, his voice slow and dreamlike.

"You're not?" Gilbert was amazed. "'Cause I'm pretty sure what we did was not awesome. Not even by _my_ standards."

"I told you already, I'm not mad," Antonio got up and crouched in front of them. He smiled at them with his eyes closed, a dangerous aura emitting off of him.

"Antonio…?" Even Gilbert had on a panicked expression. "You okay buddy…?"

"Of course I am. Although, we need to have a talk," Antonio opened his eyes into slits, shadows dancing in its green brilliance. "A _very_ serious talk."

* * *

><p>"Alright gang," Alfred gathered them around in a circle outside the Ferris Wheel. "I don't know exactly what happened in there, but our friend is distressed and it's up to us to help him out. I have no idea where Lovino went, so fan out!" With a nod of his head, everyone separated. Matthew looked around the area near the Ferris Wheel, hoping that Lovino didn't go too far. He suddenly felt a tug on his jacket hood.<p>

"What is it Kiamichi?" Matthew asked, looking at the now-awake polar bear on his back. Kumajirou pointed behind some bushes nearby, where a stray dark brown curl was sticking out. "Thanks Kumakurou!" Matthew started sprinting toward the bush as Kumajirou went back to sleep, managing a "Who are you?" before returning to dreamland.

"Lovino…?" Matthew looked over the bush; sure enough, there was Lovino hugging his knees and crouching on the ground. Matthew sat down to his left. "You okay?"

"Not sure," Lovino answered, surprising Matthew that he hadn't said "Go away!" Wasn't he mad? He sure seemed like it before. "Matthew, I don't know what to do anymore…"

"What are you talking about? What happened in there before Gilbert interrupted you two?" Matthew placed his hand on Lovino's shoulder in concern; it unnerved him to see Lovino acting so…_vulnerable._

"Antonio. He…" Lovino stopped, a small blush forming on his face. "He…"

"He what?" Matthew had a good idea of what Antonio had done; after all, it was the reason why they got them to the Ferris Wheel in the first place.

"He said that he loved me…" Lovino's voice was even quieter than Matthew's on a normal day.

"How did you reply?" Although Matthew had a good idea what Antonio would do, Lovino was much more unpredictable.

"I didn't exactly," Lovino said after a while. "I pretty much just said that I didn't hate him, and then…" He shook his head. "Look, bottom line is, I don't _hate_ Antonio, but I have no idea how to say that I lo…lo…lo…"

"I get it Lovino," Matthew chuckled and leaned back. "Have I ever told you that you're like Arthur?"

"Yes. About a thousand times a day."

"Well, it holds true even now," Matthew smiled as he reminisced. "Before you moved in and before they were dating, Nicolae, Damyan, and I were trying to get Arthur to realize his feelings for Alfred since by then, it was pretty obvious he returned my brother's feelings."

"Why would he deny it then? It would have been much easier to just accept his feelings and tell Alfred that he loved him," Matthew almost laughed outright when Lovino said that, but then he remembered that Lovino might run off if he did.

"Well, he needed some persuading. Sound familiar?" Lovino didn't reply. "Anyways, Arthur kept on denying over and over again that he didn't like my brother that way. It got so bad that I finally snapped."

"Snapped?"

"Yes snapped. Do you want to know what I said to him afterwards?" Lovino nodded. "I told him, and I quote: 'You know what Arthur, you've been my friend since I was a child, and it honestly aggravates me to see you acting like this. You've always been a role model to me and Alfred; always caring, always kind- albeit shown in a rather eccentric way-, always the gentleman. To see you acting like a child in denial when you're so much more mature than that…How could you? And so I say to you, shut the fuck up already and admit that you love my brother, 'cause you sure as _hell_ do.'"

"You did not," Lovino looked at him, a new respect for him in his eyes. "There's absolutely no fucking way _you_ said that."

"I did," Matthew grinned; _there_ was the Lovino he knew. "I'm not going to say the same to you, but if you truly love Antonio back, go tell him already. You're not exactly clear when it comes to these kinds of things, and I'm sure Antonio would appreciate your answer," Matthew stood up and stuck out his hand. "Come on Lovino; the others are looking for you, and we're all worried about you. You should at least do them the justice of showing your face to them."

Lovino took his hand and Matthew helped him up. "Hey Matthew…" He said after he was up. "Thanks. That really helped."

"That's good then," Matthew started to walk ahead of Lovino, positive that he'd follow him. "Glad I could help."

'

"Lovino, are you okay?"

Lovino tried cracking a smile. He was positive he failed. "You make it sound like I died or something."

"Well, you have to admit, you weren't exactly the same after Gilbert ruined you and Antonio's moment," Damyan started. "So…are you better now?"

He scoffed. "Of course! It'll take a lot more than _that_ to break me." Not really, but didn't he say earlier that lying was easier?

"Alright then, Mr. Tough Guy," Nicolae grinned and patted his back. "Tell us what happened in there so that I can pummel Gilbert for ruining whatever sappy moment you two probably had."

"It wasn't a sappy moment!" Lovino sighed and grudgingly started telling them what had happened during their ride in the Ferris Wheel, but his heart was half in it. _So Matthew wants me to just tell him already…_ Lovino would have sighed if he could. _It's not like I _don't_ reciprocate his feelings, it's just that…_

_ I don't know how to tell him that I love him too._

* * *

><p><em>You mad, bro? XD Like you weren't expecting their moment to be ruined. Phew! Took a while to write this, 21 pages and all…I apologize for the romance, I'm not that good at it. Oh well, I hope I executed it well enough…If you read my King's Game with this, I said that I would be uploading faster. Well, some issues came up, so chances are that I'll be updating less over the summer. Oh well...Anyways, hope that you enjoyed it and I'll try to update soon (I promise, it'll be a shorter chapter…probably XD) <em>

_P.S. I used Google Translate for the non-English words, so please correct me if I'm wrong!_


	8. What Happens When I Try

_Wow, it's been a long while huh? Well, it's an event update, yayyyy! _Oh, and I finally managed to get a cover for this story! I made it myself on SAI, but my artistic abilities are sort of lacking, so yeah XD_There's a poll in my profile if you're interested (it closes the next time I update Cat, which is the story I'll work on after this). Hope you like it and I'm sorry for the wait! _

_Sven Oxenstierna = Ladonia_

* * *

><p>There were a few things you needed to know about Lovino Vargas:<p>

1. He may flirt a lot, but romance was _not _his forte.

2. He is currently in love with a man.

3. Said man happens to be the most oblivious, sickeningly sweet, and unnaturally happy person in the world. Also happens to be capable of getting Lovino's emotions in a twist.

4. Said man also recently confessed to him. And finally…

5. Lovino fails at expressing _any_ emotion other than irritation, disdain, dislike… you get the picture.

Which was why he was currently in the school kitchen trying and failing to both make something for Antonio for upcoming Valentine's Day and finding the courage to reply to him that he felt the same (in no particular order).

"I don't-a get it," his brother Niccolo looked at Lovino's failed attempt. He had stayed behind with Lovino after he had overheard Lovino telling their grandfather that he'd go home late since he was going to do something for a while at school (luckily, the school was almost always open, save for nighttime). "How in the world did you-a mess this one up?"

"I don't know!" Lovino threw his hands down, the sleeves falling down a bit until he pushed it back up again. This was what, his 7th attempt? "Damn it, why can't I make something good already? It's only a fucking cookie!" He dumped the charred remains onto the trash can. All he was trying to do was make a simple cookie (just a cookie, not chocolate chip since he decided that that would be too complex for him), so why couldn't he do it? !

Lovino glanced at the window, the sunlight shining strongly into the room; he could tell that he had spent quite some time in the school kitchen since school ended. The school kitchen was littered with charred remains, the shiny surfaces and pristine bowls stained with charred bits and fallen ingredients that he had either bought or received from friends.

Lovino finally understood what Arthur went through every time he tried to make food.

He sighed, exhaustion from the day catching up to him. He had spent the whole day ignoring Antonio, which was pretty difficult considering that the older teen was usually with him almost 24/7. He had decided that if he was going to surprise the moron on Valentine's Day, then he shouldn't let him see the present. Luckily, his friends were there to help hide him; they didn't tell him why, but it was probably since they still wanted to make up for the fact that they were the reason that their date failed in the first place. Lovino could care less about the date- he was much more focused on how to reply to Antonio's confession than he was on how the date failed (although that part did sting him a little since there were so many "what-could-have-beens"). So far, he had managed to avoid Antonio for the whole school day, but that still didn't change the fact that he was unprepared for Valentine's Day… which was two days from now.

"Hey, I think that this one was-a close," Niccolo washed his hands in a nearby sink. He had managed to make something decent on Lovino's 4th try. Lovino wasn't sure why he was helping him in the first place, but he didn't really care. He needed all the help he could get. "I still-a don't get why you just can't-a buy something from a store."

"Because Nicolae managed to get everyone in on this idea that 'home-made things are the best' and threatened to hide my tomato stash if I didn't make something for him," Lovino replied glumly. Even though he lived next to a tomato garden, he was sure that Nicolae would find a way to go through with it. "If you're bored, you can just leave."

"And abandon my poor-a brother?" Niccolo said lightly, a faint expression of shock and amusement in his face. "Just what kind of person do you-a think I am?"

"Someone who doesn't do something without a purpose," Lovino answered with a straight-forward face. "Look, you already made something for whoever-you-have-your-eye-on-this-week, so you can just leave already."

"Ah, but that is not all that I-a came here for," Niccolo smiled. "It is true that I have already-a made something for that lovely lady from-a Monaco, but I am also trying to-a make something for a friend of mine."

"For that little blonde kid with the hat or that smart-ass artist girl?" Lovino asked, his mind going back to the first day of school when they had guides assigned (he still couldn't believe that out of _all_ the people to be assigned to him, _Antonio_ was the one who was picked. Was the world in favor of keeping them together or something?)

"Neither. It is this-a boy I met in the micronation class. Some kid from-a this place called Ladonia, although he's that-a Swedish guy's cousin," Niccolo grew thoughtful. "It's funny that you should-a mention Peter, since that's the-a boy he likes," he looked pointedly at Lovino. "Like-a you, he appears to have a problem with-a expressing his-a feelings."

"What are you talking about, I can express my feelings perfectly," Lovino walked back to his spot in front of the counter-top. Niccolo laughed.

"Yes, I-a forgot that you are the master of-a expression, which is-a why you spent all of-a last week in your room chanting "How in the fucking hell will I-a reply to Antonio? !"

Lovino's cheeks went a bright red. "Shut up, it was only 6 out of 7 days I was doing that!" His cheeks went even redder as Niccolo's smile grew. "Fuck, just get out of here, will ya?"

Niccolo only laughed some more. He took his creations- the one he made just now and the one he had made on Lovino's 4th try- and placed them in a Ziploc bag, both of which looking irritatingly edible. "Alright, but it's-a only because I have to-a search for Miss Monique and Sven soon," he walked over to the door and opened it, looking back at Lovino with an amused smile. "I-a wish you luck fratello. You-a better finish that-a today or your boyfriend will be-a very mad."

"What are you talking abou-?" Niccolo walked out before Lovino could finish his question.

_Why in the world would he tell me that? It's not like I'm going to be giving this to Antonio early…_ Lovino looked at the door one more time as if staring at it would help decipher what Niccolo had just said.

"Ahhhh, fuck it," he sighed grabbed a white apron, tying it around his midsection. "I'll just think about it later. It's not like it's important anyways. Now then," he eyed the bowl and the charred tray, now empty of its contents. "I should really start agai-"

BAM!

Lovino jumped as the kitchen door suddenly opened and was shut slam. Even though he looked like a mess, it was hard to mistake that silver-white hair and blood red eyes with anyone else (not to mention the chick he always had with him). Gilbert sighed in relief and looked around the room, his eyes falling on Lovino.

"Oh hey there Antonio's pet, what are you doing in here?" He asked casually, as if he hadn't just scared Lovino shitless.

"The fuck are you doing in here, potato bastard's brother? !" Lovino placed a hand on his chest, his heart hammering inside of him from the scare. "You look like crap!"

Gilbert chuckled. "That tends to happen when one has just run the entire length of the school. Would you like to share anything more insightful than 'You look like crap!', Feli's adorable older brother?"

"Shut up and get the fuck out, I'm busy," Lovino snarled, getting back to his cooking. He heard the sound of Gilbert's feet and found him suddenly next to him.

"_You're_ going to bake? Kesesese, I'd love to see how this will turn out," Lovino didn't even need to look to see that Gilbert was smirking. He scowled in response.

"Just you wait, I'll make the best fucking cookie you've ever seen," Lovino replied, hoping that this time he would actually be able to make something good. Lovino sensed Gilbert's smile broaden.

"Let's see then little pet, let's see."

'''''

Gilbert appraised the failed cookie as Lovino sulked in a corner. "It's better than what that Englishman can make, I can tell you that," Lovino looked up to see Gilbert shaking with suppressed laughter.

"Shut up, what are you doing over here anyways?" Lovino frowned as he watched Gilbert throw away Lovino's failed attempt. "I never expected you of all people to be here."

"So suddenly the awesome me can' come here whenever I want to?" Gilbert shrugged. "Let's just say that there are people that don't like me-"

"No shit Sherlock, what makes you think that?"

"-and people that don't _exactly_ hate me," Gilbert ignored Lovino's insult. His face made a strange expression, as if he was feeling both dislike and confusion at the same time. "Honestly, I have no idea what's wrong with him. You spend _one_ childhood with a guy and now they think you're friends. Seriously, can't he tell that I don't want him _anywhere_ near me?"

"As amusing as your monologue is," Lovino got up and dusted his backside. "I have no idea what the hell you're talking about, so either explain yourself or get out, preferably both."

"Well you see-" Gilbert's red eyes widened, and the little chick on his shoulder fluffed up its feathers. "Hide me!" Without another word, he ducked under the countertop, leaving Lovino to wonder what in the world was going on.

The kitchen door opened, and Lovino was face-to-face with the person that was feared by the majority of students in the school. A chill went through his back as he recognized the beige-blonde hair and the intense violet eyes. The student wore the standard World Academy winter uniform- an almost closed deep blue blazer over a tan sweater vest, a crisp white dress shirt and black tie, with blue plaid pants and black shoes finishing the look- and his signature pink scarf, which hung loosely around his neck. His childlike face scanned the room until it finally fell upon Lovino.

"Eh, you're that Italian student," the student's voice was strangely high-pitched and his smile was deceivingly tranquil. "Do you happen to know where Gilbert is?"

"N-no," Lovino cursed the tremble in his voice. _Dammit, where's Antonio when I need him?_ He wouldn't admit it, but having the Spanish teen with him relaxed him, and he could certainly use that presence now."W-who would?"

Ivan Braginski laughed, although that only scared Lovino more. He knew it was a normal laugh, but everything the Russian representative did just terrified him. It was like he radiated an aura of dominance and suppression, one that threatened to crush you if you didn't do what he said. "Ah, but I have already searched everywhere else. He can only be here, da?" He scanned the room again, his gaze lingering on the spot behind the countertop.

Lovino took a sideways glance at Gilbert, who was as still as a statue. Somehow, he neither looked frightened nor panicked, instead looking like hardened steel. Lovino looked back at Ivan. "Look, he's not here okay? Just ask his brother or something if you really don't know," Lovino spoke fast, hoping his voice didn't shake this time.

"I suppose that's a good idea…" Ivan murmured thoughtfully. He started to leave through the door, turning back to Lovino before he left. "Well, tell me if you find him, da?" And with that, he left.

After a few seconds, Lovino let out a breath that he hadn't realized he was holding. He glared down at Gilbert. "You. Fucking. _Owe_. Me."

Gilbert let out a hesitant chuckle. "Yeah, thanks for that," he sighed. "Seriously, I don't know why…" he suddenly became uncharacteristically quiet and pensive. Lovino became alarmed at this sudden change.

"Gilbert…?" Gilbert sighed and stood up.

"Ahhh, I'm gonna go," Even though he was facing him, it didn't seem like he was talking to Lovino. "Who knows what the hell that bastard will do if he doesn't find me soon. I just hope his sister gets to him first before I do," he walked over to the door. Like everyone else, he looked back at Lovino before leaving. "I owe you, right? Well, consider this repaid; I doubt Antonio cares much for what you get him, just make sure it's soon. You don't want to see Antonio depressed," he shuddered a bit. "Or angry for that matter… Actually, just keep Antonio a happy idiot and he'll be fine," he grinned psychotically, his old personality coming back to him. "Well see ya."

"Wait a minute, what are you talking ab-? Ahhh!" Lovino groaned as Gilbert left before he could finish. "What is with these people and telling me to finish my present soon? Can't they see that I'm trying to?" He rested his elbows on the countertop and buried his head on his hands. "Why can't these people ever be clear on what they want to say? I swear it's so fucking confusing!"

He grimaced as he stood straight up again. _Antonio,_ he looked at the dirty countertop with impending doom. _You _better_ be worth all of this. _He thought as he prepared the ingredients for his next attempt.

''''

"AHHHHHH!" Lovino felt horrible for wasting all these ingredients. "Seriously, why can't I cook like my brother? !"

"Personally, I think it looks just fine."

Lovino jumped as he faced the student leaning on the door, arms crossed across his chest. Bushy eyebrows were furrowed, and a clearly confused expression shown on his green eyes. "_Mio-_ just how long were you standing there? !"

Arthur shrugged disinterestedly. "Just now." He walked over to where Lovino was. "Unlike some, I don't make it my personal hobby to watch people," he poked Lovino's charred cooking with a finger. "I don't see what's wrong with this one. It looks as if it would be quite tasty actually."

"Arthur, you realize that what you call 'acceptable cooking' is most humans' standard for trash, right?" Lovino replied sharply. Arthur glowered at him.

"My cooking standard is perfectly normal, I'll have you know," he took an apron and tied it around his waist. "But if you don't believe me, then I'll just have to prove it to you. I have to make something for Alfred anyways, so I might as well partake in a little competition," a smug look crossed his face. "It sounds like you need the help anyways."

Lovino smirked. "Is that a challenge? It's not like I'll lose anyways," he rolled up his sleeves even though he didn't really need to. "Bring it."

'''''

Two equally burnt trays lay in front of both teens. Burnt bits were everywhere, even on their aprons, which now hung on the rack. A blue feeling of gloom hung over them both.

"Baking is hell," Lovino concluded, recalling all of his failed attempts. He couldn't believe that he had been spending so much time on making a simple _cookie _of all things… and _failing._

"Well, you know what a wise man once said," Arthur's voice was grim. He too seemed to have accepted that he didn't do so well. "'If you're going through hell, keep going.'"

Lovino scowled. "What is with you two and World War II? Actually, what is with you two and history in general? I expected _you_ to like history, but I didn't expect Alfred to like it too."

Arthur gave one of his rare smiles. "You're kidding me right? The lad dresses up in a vintage World War II pilot jacket in his free time, and you think that he's not the least bit interested in history?" He chuckled lightly. "As for myself, history is like a story, and you have to admit that Winston Churchill is a very inspiring man," Arthur placed his cooking in a Ziploc bag. "Well, I best be off. It's getting late and I didn't plan to make too much."

Lovino started at the bag. "You're not seriously thinking of giving him that, are you? There's a _reason_ I've been throwing away anything inedible."

"_In_edible. This one is surely edible," Lovino didn't bother to correct him this time; at the moment, he was much too depressed to do so. Arthur must have sensed his sadness, since his voice softened the next time he spoke. "Cheer up lad; I'm sure your boyfriend wouldn't want you to be upset on a day as special as this one."

"He's not my boyfriend and what the hell are you talking about?" Lovino asked glumly. Utter shock appeared on Arthur's face.

"Don't you know? Today is-" Just then, the door slammed open.

"ArthurwherewereyouI'vebeenlookingforyoueverywher eandwhenIaskedFrancishesaids omethingreallyweirdsoIpunche dhiminthegutbutIthinkImighth avehithimtoohardand you didn't happen to have made something, have you?" Somehow, Alfred managed to say all this in one breath, only slowing down when he saw the remains of supposed food items around. "'Cause you suck at cooking. Like, big time. I doubt you can even make anything remotely edible."

"Why you little-" Arthur's personality changed in a heartbeat. He threw one of the scorched ingredients at Alfred, who effortlessly captured it while taking a bite out of the burger in his hands. "I try to do something nice for you, and you don't even _attempt_ to like it!"

"Of course I'm not going to attempt to like it," As always, Alfred was his usual tactless self. "Lying isn't something a hero should do."

"You ungrateful brat!" Lovino's mind instantly went to the word "tomato" when describing the shade of Arthur's skin, causing him to internally curse the idiot he so loved but couldn't tell. "I might as well leave you in the gutter and- bloody hell, why are you _smiling_ of all things? !"

"Because you're cute," Even Lovino was taken aback by the American's bluntness. "You really think it matters to me if I get a present?" He pondered on the sentence for a second. "Okay, so _maybe_ I like getting presents, but I prefer having you with me more than some present," he took a bite out of the burger, looking wholly oblivious at Arthur's now crimson face.

"Why…you…" Arthur's attention was drawn to his feet, unable to finish his sentence and kept on stuttering various insults under his breath. Alfred just laughed and walked towards Arthur, causing Arthur to shut up when he grabbed his arm.

"Let's go on a date!" Alfred beamed at Arthur. "We haven't been to one in a long time, and we might as well! Plus, I doubt that- Hey, why is your face red?" Alfred bent down to look at Arthur's face, which underwent an even redder shade.

"You insufferable fool, stop saying those things…" Arthur looked away while biting his cheek. That didn't affect Alfred in the slightest.

"I'll take that as a yes then!" Alfred smiled yet again and began to walk away with Arthur, who was willingly coming along despite the occasional curse every now and then. It wasn't until Lovino got the taste of diabetes out of his mouth that he remembered that Arthur hadn't answered his question yet.

"Wait, don't go ye- WHY DOES EVERYONE KEEP DOING THAT? !" Lovino screamed as the two had already closed the door before he could – _yet again-_ finish his question. "You might as well not tell me anything relatively important to me if you're just going to leave the _second_ afterwards." He got up and started cleaning the kitchen. It took some time, but Lovino managed to clean some of it up. He glanced at the now cleaner room and made his way towards the kitchen sink, wanting to wash his hands clean of the foodstuff and whatnot.

Right on cue, Lovino heard the sound of the door open the minute he finished washing his hands. Unlike last time however the door opened silently, as if whoever came in didn't want anyone knowing that they were there.

Lovino let out a sigh as he wiped his hands on the blue cloth next to him. "Look, I don't care who you are, but I have to clean this crapload of a mess, and I don't want anyone rui-" his eyes widened when he realized who had come in. "…ning it," his voice faltered as he saw the other boy grimace. "Nicolae, just what are _you_ doing here?"

"Lovino," Lovino could tell that he was forcing himself to act happy. "What a nice surprise… What are you doing here?"

"I'm in a kitchen. What else would I do?" Lovino's reply was puzzled instead of containing his usual snark. "What I don't get is why _you_ would be here. I mean, you don't exactly strike me as the type that bakes."

"What exactly do I strike you as then?" His smile was weak, and even Lovino could tell that Nicolae was just stalling for time.

"Nicolae, just tell me what you're here for already," Lovino started to gather the dirty bowls, cooking utensils, etc. and brought them to the sink, turning on the water so that he could start washing them again (if it was his turn to wash the dishes when he got home, he would just bribe his grandfather with tomatoes just to get out of it; he's washed _that_ many dishes today). "Unless you want to help me clean up? I just stopped baking anyways."

"You can bake?" Nicolae's voice was hopeful. _Today is so weird._ Lovino thought as he recalled everyone's behavior. _Just what is up with today?_

"No," he gestured to the mess around him. "Nicolae, what's wrong with you? The Nicolae I know- hell, any normal person- could tell failure just by looking at this room. Seriously, why are you here?"

"Oh, I uhhh…" his eyes darted around the room as if he was a deer caught in headlights. "I… went to the wrong room?"

"You've got to be kidding me right?"

Nicolae sighed in defeat. His eyes went to Lovino's failed creation and his expression changed. "I know!" It was like he had just screamed out 'eureka!' "I'll help you cook; if I can somehow help you improve on your cooking, then I'll tell you. If I can't, I won't," he looked at Lovino. "Deal?"

Lovino contemplated the offer. There was no way Nicolae was going to actually try to help him, but seeing as how he really didn't have much to lose… "Eh, what the hell, sure." Nicolae grinned in triumph.

"Alright, it's time to fail!"

'''''

Nicolae stared with disbelief at the finished cookies. They were simple, brown, circular, and generally unimpressive, but _Lovino did it._ "How'd you cook up a cookie with _those_ instructions? ! _No one_ should have been able to make something even remotely _edible_ with the instructions I gave you!"

Lovino shrugged and hung his apron on the rack. Nothing could deter his happiness now. "I don't know. All I know is I just tweaked some of the instructions you said and here they are," he took out a Ziploc bag. He opened it and delicately placed some cookies inside, as if he was handling damaged goods. He looked at Nicolae with a smug look, a total contrast to Nicolae's one of utter defeat. "So you're in here why?"

Nicolae hung his head down and started picking up the rest of the cookies, also shoving them in a Ziploc bag. For some reason, the tips of his ears were red. "Err because… I wanted to make some cookies…"

"That's it?" Why'd Lovino have to go through a bet just to get that out of Nicolae? The bet helped him in the end, but it was still unnecessary. "Why didn't you just say so? Unless it's for someone el-"

"Don't say it!" Nicolae panicked and quickly covered Lovino's mouth with his hands. "So what if I was? You're doing the same thing!"

Lovino tore Nicolae's hands off his mouth. "Yeah, but I never thought you liked someone. Just who is it?" Nicolae looked away.

"Err, I should go now," he quickly made his way towards the door before Lovino could react. "It's getting late and-"

Just then, the door opened before Nicolae could reach it. Nicolae froze, his eyes widening at who had come in. Meanwhile, the student just looked at him and smiled.

"Nicolae, what are you still doing here?" Damyan looked at the Ziploc bag he was holding. "Eh, you were making cookies? For whom?"

"Uh… uh…."

Lovino quirked his eyebrows as Nicolae's face turned redder. _I really should have seen that one coming…_ He thought as he glanced at Damyan. "Hey Damyan," the other turned to him. "Would you like to know who Nicolae made those cookies for?"

Nicolae glared at him while Damyan thought about it. "Well," he started out slowly. "I would love to know who Nicolae would give those cookies t-"

"Haha, no you don't," Nicolae quickly pushed him out of the door, sending one last death glare at Lovino, as if he was saying 'I'll get you for this'. "Well, I'll see you later Lovino," Nicolae's voice was carefully controlled as he left the door. "Oh and if you see Antonio, go wish him a happy birthday for me, okay?"

_Birthday?_

Lovino froze as he quickly went through his memories. Finally, he remembered when Antonio had told him about his birthday.

_It was some time ago, a few days before their failed date. Lovino and Antonio were walking home together from school, Antonio mindlessly chattering away while Lovino pretended not to listen._

_ "So Lovi, when is your birthday?"_

_ "Where the hell did that come from?"_

_ "Well, I just realized that I never asked you that and that's important information! What will I do when it's your birthday and I didn't even know? I won't be able to get you something!"_

_ "Idiot, you don't have to do anything for my birthday."_

_ "But I have to Lovi! …It didn't pass already, did it?"_

_ "Will you just let it go? …If you really want to know, my birthday is on March 17."_

_ "Eh, so it hasn't passed yet? ! That's good… Hey, that's about a month off from my birthday!"_

_ "Not that I particularly care, but when would that be?"_

_ "February 12!"_

_ "Isn't that 2 days away from Valentine's Day?"_

_ "Yup, so I'll be expecting something extra special from you, so you better remember it Lovi~!"_

_ "Ahhh, just shut up already."_

Lovino sprinted out the door. _Shit, I can't believe I forgot that today was his birthday!_ No wonder everyone kept telling him to finish already; they probably thought that he was making something for Antonio's birthday!

He rounded the corner, not really knowing where to go. His plan was to just run around school until he either a) found Antonio or b) got tired. Right now, B seemed to be the most possible option. Lovino slowed down by the time he reached the Europe Group 1 Class, already tired from running from one end of the school to the other. He leaned next to the door to catch his breath, a hand on his chest to steady himself. The minute he caught his breath, he started hearing voices from the other side.

"Ve, are you sure he's not here…?" It wasn't hard to recognize his brother's voice, especially with his habit of saying 'Ve'. It was the next voice that surprised him.

"I'm sure that he's not here, Feli," Antonio's voice was glum. "I haven't seen him for the whole day actually, so I didn't even know that he had gone to school…"

"Don't worry Antonio," Feliciano's voice was sympathetic. "I'm sure you'll see Lovino today. After all, today _is_ your birthday; I'm sure he remembered it," he heard Feliciano pick something up. "Oh well, I'll just call him when I get home. It's troublesome, but I forgot my phone in my room," he heard Feliciano laugh at something Antonio had said afterwards. "No, I can't do that. It's your phone, and I'm sure fratello doesn't even know that I gave you his number."

_He what? !_ Lovino was tempted to come in there and just scream at Feliciano, but then he heard footsteps on the other side. He quickly ran and hid behind some lockers just as the door opened.

"I'll see you later big brother Antonio!" He heard Feliciano call over to the other teen. "Don't stay in too late! I'm sure he'll come see you soon!" Lovino heard even more footsteps. He waited until they faded away before he moved out of his hiding spot. Feliciano was nowhere in sight, and the door to the classroom was still open. Lovino crept forward and used the door as cover, peering into the classroom. Just barely, he saw Antonio leaning back onto the teacher's desk, his face turned to the ceiling. For some reason, he looked older than he actually was.

"Ahh…" Antonio pouted at the ceiling. "And I thought that this year I could finally…" He sighed, something Lovino hadn't seen him do often. "I wonder how long it's been? 11 years? 10? Ahh, I don't remember…" He became silent after that, as if he was in deep thought. Finally, Lovino couldn't take it anymore.

"Oi, you shouldn't be so quiet like that," Antonio jumped as Lovino walked in the room. "It makes you look less of an idiot when you're not talking."

He kept on walking until he was right next to Antonio, leaning back onto the desk the same way as him. "Honestly, Gilbert was right; I really should just keep you a happy idiot," he shoved the cookies to Antonio's face. "Here. It took me a long time to make these, so you better like them."

"Eh, is that why I didn't see you the whole day?" Antonio opened the Ziploc bag and took out a small cookie. He took a bite out of it, his eyes widening after he bit it. "It's so good~"

"Moron, it's just a cookie," Lovino looked away, trying to ignore the pleased feeling in his chest. Seriously, why was it that this guy could make him feel like this? Speaking of feelings… "Hey, umm…" Antonio stopped eating and looked at him. "I'm sorry…"

Antonio placed the cookies down, the air suddenly losing its previous happy feel. "For what? You have nothing to apologize for Lovi."

"Yes, I do," Lovino took a deep breath and hung his head down. "I forgot about your birthday when I said I wouldn't. Hell, I wouldn't have remembered if everyone didn't keep trying to tell me."

Silence. Suddenly, Antonio broke out in boisterous laughter. Lovino reddened and turned to him. "What's so funny? !"

"Lovi, you're so cute you know?" Antonio's laughter eventually died down into chuckles. He wrapped his arms around Lovino's neck, effectively bringing the other closer to him. "It doesn't matter that you had forgotten; you're here with me now, and that's all that matters! Plus, you got me cookies!"

Lovino blushed even more. "Ahh, shut up! And don't get so close to me you idiot!" He tried to get the other off of him, but failed. "And those cookies are for two days from now, so you're getting nothing for Valentine's Day!"

"Eh, but that's horrible Lovi…" Antonio stared at him, beautiful green eyes wide. Damn those green eyes. "Then what's my birthday present?"

"Err…" Dammit, he really shouldn't have said that. Lovino could have sworn that he was growing redder by the second just by staring at Antonio, especially since his face was so close to his; he was probably as red as a tomato! _Wait… 'tomato'…_ A strange idea formed in his head, one that solved both of his problems.

"Lovi?" Antonio looked worriedly at him. "Are you oka-?"

"_T __here is_

_O __nly one person that_

_M __atters to me_

_A __nd_

_T __here is no other that I love._

_O __nly you."_

Lovino looked away, but not before he saw Antonio freeze with utter shock. "Lovi… Was that a-?"

"Poem? Yes, yes it was. Care to make any other insightful remarks?" Lovino kept looking away. _I can't believe I just did that._ "W-well, you do it so many damn times that I t-thought that maybe I should try it for a change, s-since the ones you make are always so damn che- mmph!"

Lovino felt Antonio's hands on the sides of his face as he turned Lovino so that he would face him. Before he knew it, Antonio had pulled him in a kiss; even though his lips were barely touching Lovino's, it was enough to make his heart race. He didn't know when he did, but he found himself closing his eyes as Antonio deepened the kiss.

He didn't know how long they stayed like that; it could have been decades, centuries, eras, but when Antonio pulled back, it felt like it ended all too soon. Antonio's eyes opened, soft green eyes looking straight at him.

"You really are too cute, you know…" His voice was soft and affectionate, nothing like his normally louder and overly-fond self.

Lovino was sure he went ten times redder. "S-stop saying stupid things moron…"

Antonio laughed softly and brought his forehead to Lovino's. "_Te amo, mi tomate."_

"I-idiot…" Lovino looked away. _"T…Ti amo idiota…"_

This man really _did_ know how to make Lovino's feelings in a mess.

* * *

><p><em>*headdesk* I feel like I didn't give this chapter enough justice… Anyways, yay for event chapter! I was supposed to write this earlier, but then I downloaded the trial of VX Ace and started making a game… Not to mention, I had to upload the other stories first… Just think of this as compensation for the long wait, ok?<em>

_(On a side-note, I can't be the ONLY person who pairs Ladonia with Sealand. Please? Oh, and the next chapter MIGHT be an event chapter too, depending on where I decide the plot to go… Hope you stick around 'til then!)_


	9. Filler: Friendship Poetry

_Filler chapter! It's not relevant to the central plot, but hey, our side characters need more love 8D Oh and if people are bothered by Nicolae's name being Romani and not Romanian, please tell me so that I can change it. Other than that, enjoy~_

_P.S. The poll mentioned in the previous chapter ended, and I already posted the story for it._

_**Edit**: Thank you Ankoku-Ren for that correction!_

* * *

><p>Damyan clapped the erasers together, the chalk dust flying everywhere.<p>

"I don't see why we have to do this," he turned to see Nicolae scowling. Damyan bit the inside of his cheek, noticing his friend's hidden unhappiness_. I wonder what's wrong with him..._ Ever since Antonio's birthday, Nicolae didn't seem to be his usual happy self, which troubled Damyan greatly.

"I can't believe that_ you're _the one saying that," Damyan placed the erasers away. Nicolae had been oddly silent earlier that day, and when Damyan had asked him about it, they had been caught for talking in class and were given after school cleaning duty because of it. This wasn't the way Damyan had been planning his Valentine's Day, but as long as he was spending it with a friend, it was fine. "Cheer up," he pleaded. "I don't know what's been bothering you, but I don't like seeing my best friend so blue."

Nicolae looked away, preventing Damyan from seeing his expression. "Hey," he started out slowly. "Do you want to spy on Lovino's date? It's their first official date, and I doubt that Lovino will tell us about it later."

_If it makes him happy..._ "Sure."

''''''''

"Target sighted."

Damyan held the walkie-talkie up to his face as Nicolae's voice emitted from the small device. He was crouched up behind a bush, passerbys no doubt staring at him from behind (luckily after tagging along on so many of Nicolae's scope-outs, he had gotten used to it). Nicolae was hiding up in a tree somewhere, completely unseen like he normally was. Up ahead, Lovino and Antonio were sitting outside a stand, chatting as they ate. They had chosen to go to a park for their first date; both were still wearing their school clothes, apparently having gone on their date soon after school ended.

"What do you think we should do now?" Damyan asked. After they had left the classroom, they had went around asking for Lovino's and Antonio's whereabouts, finally figuring it out after asking Lovino's youngest brother. Then, they looked around the park until they saw them here. "Do we just follow them and see how the date goes?"

"Yeah, I still need to pay him back for what he did on Antonio's birthday," Nicolae muttered on the other end. Damyan remembered the moment he had walked in on both boys inside the school kitchen. He felt a twinge as he remembered that Nicolae had been baking for someone for Valentine's Day… Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen Nicolae give anything to anyone the whole day. Just _who_ was he planning to give those cookies to?

"Hey, that reminds me…" Damyan heard a silence on the other end, which he knew was Nicolae listening to him. "You never _did_ tell me who you were giving those cookies to," he didn't know why, but for some reason, he was _very_ curious as to who Nicolae would be giving those cookies to. Despite being a romanticist, Nicolae never gave anything away on Valentine's Day, even for family. He had said that he if he was going to give something on Valentine's Day, it would be to the person he loved. For as long as he had known him, Nicolae never seemed to be interested in anybody, so Damyan had been very surprised when he had found him baking cookies with Lovino.

He heard a sharp intake on the other end. "That… Th-that's none of your business!" Nicolae said sharply at him. Damyan blinked, feeling something in him snap.

"None of my business?" He struggled to keep his voice calm. "Well that's a first for you Vladimirescu," there was a well-deserved silence on the other end. Damyan never used Nicolae's last name when addressing him, even when he was mad at the other. "It's not like you to get mad at me for asking about cookies."

"Damyan-"

"And you've been in a rather odd mood for quite a while now," He felt cold all over. "Look, I don't know why you're mad, but that doesn't mean that you can treat me- your best friend for like, what, 13 or 14 years?- like absolute crap."

"I know, it's just-" Damyan didn't hear the rest. He had turned off the walkie-talkie a few seconds after Nicolae started talking, a sudden rage filling his insides. He clipped the device to the side of his pants and walked away from the bush quickly, sitting down on a bench once he was a considerable distance away.

_What the hell am I doing?_ Damyan leaned forward and laid his hands on his knees, using one hand to hold up his hand. _It's not like me to snap at Nicolae…_ He sighed, wondering where that sudden burst of anger came from. _How troublesome… I suppose I have to apologize to him. We've had fights before, but not to the point where I'd use his last name._ He picked up the walkie-talkie, about to turn it on when he heard a voice.

"Damyan?" He looked up to see Gilbert of all people standing over him. He too was wearing his school clothes. "Ha, I knew it was you!"

"No offense, but what exactly are you doing here?" Damyan tilted his head up at him as he fastened the walkie-talkie back to the side of his pants. "Are you on a date like Lovino too?"

"You've seen them?" Gilbert sat down next to him. "I haven't seen those two since I got here."

"I saw them a while ago at that stand over there," Damyan replied. "They probably left already though. I don't think you should follow them," he added. "They should enjoy their first date without us butting in."

"Haha, you're a good person," Gilbert chuckled. "Don't worry; I didn't come here to spy on them. Francis was on a date with that crush of his and I just needed to help him with a few things."

"_Francis_ needed help on a date?" Today was very, _very_ odd. "Now _that's_ a first."

"Hey, this girl's different. Francis doesn't want to mess this one up," Gilbert leaned back on the chair. "So what are you doing here by yourself?" He asked. "You're usually with Nicolae."

"Yeah, we sort of got into a fight," Damyan sighed. "Over some stupid cookies too."

"Food can do that to a man," Gilbert laughed. "Look, I have no idea how this fight started between you two, but I'm sure that with some awesomeness, you'll be able to fix it."

"You're not going to help me, are you?"

"What's so bad about that?" He had probably seen Damyan's look of dismay. "Awesomeness solves everything you know."

"I'm sure your mere presence has enough awesomeness for me, so I don't think I'll need your help," Damyan answered, a feeling of impatience rising up within him. All he needed was to apologize, right? He didn't need any help for that. Gilbert threw an arm around his shoulder.

"From the looks of it, there's more to that fight than you're letting on," Damyan froze at how accurate the Prussian's statement was. "The awesome me is right, isn't he?"

"Surprisingly so," he sighed. "I don't know what came over me. I just felt a bit upset since he wouldn't answer a question."

"Let me guess; Nicolae baked cookies for Valentine's Day and he refused to tell you who he's giving it to?"

"Yeah and when I asked Lovino, Nicolae wouldn't let him say it," some of that annoyance came back to him, and he found himself ranting. "I'm his best friend! Why wouldn't he tell me who he's giving those cookies to? I have a fucking _right_ to know, dammit!"

"Err," Gilbert removed his arm from around Damyan's shoulder. "I should know since I've been with someone who has them before, but it certainly sounds like you have some possession issues."

"What are you talking about? I don't treat Nicolae like a possession," Damyan leaned forward and placed his arms on his knees, interlocking his hands and then resting his chin on them. "I just don't like how he didn't tell me about how he has a crush on someone."

"Are you sure that's all there is to it?" Gilbert's voice was soft. "'Cause it _really _sounds like you-"

"_I'm sure_," Damyan asserted, his irritation starting to ebb. He let out a breath and then smiled. "Wow, I feel loads better now. I think I can go apologize to him now without exploding at him," he beamed at the other. "Thanks Gilbert!"

Gilbert just stared at him. "Man, even after being with Antonio so long, I _still_ haven't learned that it's the nice ones I have to watch out for."

This time, it was Damyan who threw his arm around the other's shoulder, making sure that he didn't hit Gilbird in the process. "What are you talking about? I'm as harmless as a fly. It's Matthew, Alfred, and Antonio you have to watch out for," he laughed.

"No kidding," Gilbert grinned. "Well, what are you waiting for?" Damyan looked at him quizzically. "Go apologize to the man!"

"Oh yeah!" Damyan removed his arm and grabbed the walkie-talkie. He switched the small device on, the feedback playing out after he turned it on. "Nicolae?" He said tentatively. "Hey… are you there?"

Nothing. Only feedback answered his hesitant words. Damyan sighed and turned the device off, attaching it back onto the side of his pants. "He probably turned it off already. With those hiding skills of his, he could be anywhere."

"Let's go find him then," Gilbert stood up and looked at him. "Sounds like if you don't apologize fast, you'll go crazy."

"I'm not that desperate yet," Damyan laughed as he stood up. "I just need to sort this out fast. Although it's a bit odd Nicolae turned his walkie-talkie off; he almost always keeps it on…"

"Maybe it's running out of batteries?" Gilbert shrugged as he started walking, Damyan following him in turn. "Either way, we can't exactly rely on it."

"True," Damyan pushed on ahead. "Last time I talked to him, he was up in a tree, although he probably relocated somewhere already."

"Any ideas where he could be?"

Damyan tilted his head in thought. "When he sulks, he has a tendency to go to darker places and go draw something. He probably didn't leave the park, but I don't know any dark places in here…"

"You guys saw Antonio and Lovino, right?" Damyan shook his head. "That's a yes, right? Oh well, maybe he followed them?"

"Yeah, that's possible. We _did_ come here to spy on their date after all."

"And you tell me that they need their privacy," Gilbert chuckled under his breath. "Knowing Antonio, he's probably sitting on a bench with Lovino and just talking with him."

"How simple for a first date," Damyan commented. Gilbert shrugged.

"Antonio's a pretty simple person," he said in turn. "Although he has a special talent of making simple things more special than they really are."

"Like those poems of his?"

"Yup," Damyan stopped when he realized that there were in a new section of the park. Two small ponds where in front of him, a cobblestone bridge over the small stream that connected the two ponds. Benches and lamplights were strewn across the path along with some trees. Children, adults, and some teens were found all over the place. Sitting on a bench on the other side of pond were Antonio and Lovino, both of which were just casually watching the ducks swim across the pond.

"Looks like we found them," Gilbert stated. "Wanna go up to them and ask if they saw that boyfriend of yours?"

"He's a boy, he's my friend, but he's not my boyfriend," Damyan said shortly as he walked on ahead. "And sure." They crossed over the bridge then came up to Lovino and Antonio.

"Damyan, what are you doing here?" Lovino asked, narrowing his eyes a bit at him. "You're not spying on my date, are you?"

"Please, I can hide much better than this," Damyan smiled as Lovino relaxed at his answer.

"Gilbert, what are you doing here?" Even though he looked happy, it was clear that Antonio was pissed. "Are _y_ou spying on my date?"

"The awesome me wouldn't stoop to such a low level," Gilbert said confidently, looking away from Antonio as he did so. Damyan glared at him.

"Hey, that's a pretty low shot." Gilbert brought his hands up in an apology.

"Let's just focus on the task at hand, ok?" Gilbert looked back at the couple. "Hey, have you guys seen Damyan's boyfriend? They were spying on you two but got into a little fight, so now he's looking for him."

"You were actually spying on me? !" Even though Lovino looked annoyed, he seemed to be more focused on their fight. "And you argued with Nicolae?"

"Yeah, I sort of got short with him. Oh and another thing," Damyan glared at Gilbert again. "Nicolae is _not_ my boyfriend."

"He's not?" Antonio sounded _way_ too shocked for Damyan's liking, as if he truly believed that they were dating. _Sure we're close, but that's just… _His face went faintly red at the thought.

"No, he is not!" Damyan shook his head to get rid of his straying thoughts. "Nicolae is only my friend, nothing else! I don't even want to date him!"

A faint rustling was heard, and from the corner of his eye, he saw some movement. By the time he turned towards it, it was gone, but not before Damyan saw the familiar strawberry blonde hair of a certain Romanian. "Shit, I think he heard me."

"Judging by how fast he ran, he seems pretty upset too," Damyan glowered at the silver-haired teen.

"Dude, _not_ helping."

"You should go follow him," Antonio advised. "If he's anything like Lovi, then he'll take it to heart."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lovino made a weak scowl at his date before turning back to Damyan. "He's right though. I don't know what you guys fought about, but Nicolae really thinks a lot about you. He told me so when we were baking cookies."

"That reminds me…" Damyan knew that he should really focus on finding Nicolae, but this _was_ what had started their fight on the first place. "You said you knew who he was giving those cookies to. Just who is it?"

Lovino bit his lip as he put on a thoughtful expression. "I think you should figure that out for yourself," he said finally. "You should go now. I may not have known him as long as you do, but I do know that he can run pretty fast."

"I'll just go now," Gilbert said as Damyan looked at him, about to ask him if he was ready to go. "This is something you should handle yourself… and I have a crap ton of homework to do."

"You always were awkward around couples," Antonio shook his head.

"Hey, the awesome me is just way too awesome to be paired with someone else. Except maybe Gilbird," Gilbert petted the little bird on his shoulder. "Anyways, good luck Damyan."

"Thanks!" Damyan started to sprint towards Nicolae's general direction. _Where did he go?_ He thought as he looked around the green hills of the park, the two ponds behind him. _Even though he's a fast runner, he couldn't have gone that far…_ Damyan leaned against a nearby tree, trying to catch his energy before looking for him. The tree was sturdy and stout, the branches low enough that it would be quite easy to climb. Leaves grew all around it, making it a good place to hide.

_Wait a minute…_ Damyan took a closer look at the tree he was leaning against. _I'm not normally this lucky, but maybe…? _He climbed the tree trunk and looked around. Sure enough, hidden near the upper part of the tree where he couldn't be seen without closer inspection, was Nicolae.

"Crap." Nicolae sighed as he made his way down to the tree. "I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

Damyan rejoined him on the ground. "Nicolae, I think you know that I'm just about the only person who can find you when you're hiding… Granted, you _were_ rushed this time, so you did a pretty sloppy job."

"Yeah…" they sat down under the tree. "By the way, what happened to you? When you got angry with me, you suddenly turned off your walkie-talkie and ran off. I tried to talk to you, but then the batteries ran out and I didn't have any spares on me so I just turned it off. I hoped that you were still following Lovino and Antonio so that I could find you easier, but that didn't seem to be the case."

"Sorry about that," Damyan stretched out his food, keeping one of them propped to place an arm on. "I had to cool my head a bit for a while. When I tried to call you, your walkie-talkie was off."

"Yeah…"

They just sat under that tree, not speaking to each other for a while. Finally, Damyan broke the silence. "Hey," Nicolae turned to him. "I'm sorry for getting mad at you a while ago. I don't know what came over me."

"No worries," Nicolae let out a small laugh. "If I was in your situation, I would have freaked out too," a brief silence. "You didn't happen make anything for anyone for Valentine's Day, did you?"

"No." Nicolae seemed both relieved and disappointed at that answer, piquing Damyan's curiosity. "But _you _did," he scratched the back of his head. "I know we just sort of fought about it, but who's the girl you're giving those cookies to?"

"About that…" Nicolae chuckled awkwardly as he reached into his pocket. He took out the cookies and held them in front of Damyan.

Damyan frowned. "They look fine to me. I'm sure that whichever girl you're giving it to will like it." Nicolae shook his head.

"I'm giving them to _you,_" he looked at the other in shock, although Nicolae had turned away. "Why else would I be holding it in front of you?"

"I don't know," he took the small package and opened it, taking one of the cookies and biting on it. "Wow, it's pretty good."

The side of Nicolae's mouth twitched up into a smile. "You don't know _what_ Lovino and I went through to make these."

"I'm scared to ask," Damyan ate another one of the cookies and then tucked in the package in his pocket. "Although..." he turned towards the other. "Why are you giving them to me?"

Nicolae didn't answer. Instead, he took something else from his pants pocket and handed it to Damyan.

"What is th-?"

"Read it," he said softly as Damyan accepted the piece of paper. "Just… read it."

"Alright." Damyan opened up the square piece of paper, his eyes widening at the message.

**F**

**R**

**O**

'

**M**

**Y**

**~~OUR**

'

**BES**

**T"F**

**RIE**

'

**N""N**

**D"'I**

**S**

'

**CHD**

**EI'~**

**CLH**

'

**O""N**

**O**

**D**

'

**ICO**

**L"A**

**EVL**

'

**A"E**

**D"R**

**IMI**

'

**S**

**C**

U

"'From your best friend since childhood, Nicolae Vladimirescu," Damyan read the message with a puzzled look on his face. "Hey, why is the 'u' at the end diffe-?" Suddenly, he saw the message that Nicolae had meant to convey. "'I… I…'"

"'I love you!'" Nicolae's face was scarlet. "Cheesy, isn't it? I-I guess hanging around Lovino h-has gotten me into poems, h-hasn't it?"

"Do you really mean this?" Nicolae gulped at Damyan's quiet voice.

"Y…yes…" Somehow, Nicolae managed to be quieter than Damyan. "I-I've been so strange this whole time b-because I've been thinking about how to c-confess to you… Although you don't want to date me, do you?"

"You heard that, huh…?" Damyan leaned back and sighed. "I didn't mean that. Well," he bit the inside of his cheek as he tried to figure out a way to phrase what he wanted to say. "I guess that I'm too used to thinking of you as only my 'best friend' that I wasn't used to thinking of you as anything else."

"Oh…" The disappointment in Nicolae's voice was devastating, but Damyan knew he could change that.

"But I realize now that my way of thinking has changed from that," he continued. "I don't know when, but at some point, I started thinking of you as more than a best friend. I guess that's why it irked me so much when I heard that you were giving cookies to someone today. I wasn't mad because you hadn't told me about it; I was mad because I couldn't stand the thought of you liking someone else." The moment the words were out of his mouth, he realized that it was true.

Meanwhile, Nicolae seemed to have gone beyond the color red. "Y-you…w…w-what are you s-saying?"

"What I'm saying is," Damyan looked the other straight in the eye. "I love you too."

A stunned silence. Finally, Nicolae flushed. "You… Wait, what? !"

"You heard me," Damyan smiled at how flustered Nicolae was. He stood up and leaned over the other. "So now that we're a couple, would you like to have our first date here as well? I'm sorry to say that I didn't prepare anything for Valentine's Day, but I can make up for it in our date," he stuck out his hand in invitation. "What do you say?"

"I…" Damyan found it adorable how disoriented confident Nicolae was; it only made him happier that he was the only person that could do that to him. Nicolae took his hand. "I would love to."

"Great!" Damyan beamed at him as he helped him get up. "Let's go then скъпи (dear)!"

Damyan's grin grew wider as Nicolae blushed more at the affectionate name. _Yup,_ he thought as he started to walk with Nicolae, both hands intertwined. _This is _definitely_ how I want to spend my Valentine's Day._

* * *

><p><em>How was it? First filler I've ever done and I think I did okay… I hope… The Bulgarian might be incorrect since I used Translate, so correct me if I'm wrong! As for the poem, I personally like it, even if it <em>is _sort of confusing. Next update should be an event chapter, so hope you stick around 'til then!_


	10. Gift: Joker Poetry

_(This was supposed to be a Thanksgiving gift but stuff came so I just finished it on Black Friday)_

_Gift chapter! This was a spur of the moment idea (I figured my readers needed a Thanksgiving gift) so don't expect much planning done on this XD Originally, this was going to take place in Thanksgiving but the story right now is on Valentine's Day and that is WAY too big a time-skip for what is planned in this story. Anyways, enjoy!_

_P.S. Why it's not called a filler chapter? While it doesn't help the central plot, there _is _some plot relevance in this chapter, so it's like a filler that matters! XD_

_P.P.S. This is my favorite chapter title so far (not that you guys read them though :D)_

* * *

><p>Arthur kept a respectful silence as Nicolae prattled on about his date. It was the day after Valentine's Day, and it certainly seemed that everyone enjoyed it (even his brother Peter, who had refused to tell Arthur why he was so ridiculously happy). Arthur leaned back on his chair, the sinking sun on his right shining a yellowish, orange light on his face. The computer whirred in front of him as Arthur talked on his cell phone, the screen showing plans for various school activities.<p>

"Sounds like you had fun," he commented as Nicolae took a breath. "I'm glad that you and Damyan finally got together. I was starting to wonder when you two would realize that you have feelings for each other."

"Be quiet Arthur, we didn't have feelings for each other until recently," Arthur let out a small chuckle at the embarrassment in Nicolae's voice. "Anyways, how long are you going to stay in the Student Council Room? You're not secretly writing fanfiction or something are you?"

"Nonsense, I'm simply planning some school events."

"Are you sure you can stay for that long? It's getting pretty late…"

"I've stayed for longer hours in the Student Council Room before," Arthur clicked something, bringing up another screen. "Plus, this is probably the biggest of the few school events we have."

"And probably the most insane," he didn't even need to say what the event was for Nicolae to know which one he was talking about. "Sometimes I wonder about our school; I mean, what kind of school allows an event like that?"

"Hey, it only went out of hand once. It's usually quite tame."

"That's because that was the only year so far to have a choice picked that was even relatively violent. All other years it's usually something calm, like doing one of Shakespeare's plays or a trivia competition," Nicolae let out a wistful sigh. "I must be insane, but I sort of wish we had a year like that again. I had a lot of fun, even if you and Antonio got _way_ too into it."

"Carriedo goaded me into it first," Arthur curled his lip. "It would have been a peaceful reenactment had he not taunted me."

"Calm down Arthur, I feel like you're going to explode on me," Nicolae chuckled on the other end. "But now that I think about it, Antonio really mellowed out as time went on. You have to admit that he was a bit of a problem child at that time."

"Everyone goes through that phase," Alfred rubbed the back of his head as he recalled that he was a bit of a problem child at that time as well. "I just hope that nothing bad happens this year; it's Francis' turn to prepare the choices and who _knows_ what he'll pick."

"Hey don't worry, I'm sure that this year will be the most peaceful one yet," Nicolae said reassuringly. "The choice pool is the same every year, right? As far as I know, there's nothing bad in there."

"I know, it's just this feeling that…" He sighed and shook his head. "Anyways, I'm just putting some finishing touches for some of these activities. It's times like these when I realize that our school is truly unique. What other school has a 'Siesta Club' for one thing?"

"Says the president of our Magic Club," Arthur could imagine Nicolae smirking. "Now that I think about it, we haven't done much lately, haven't we?"

"After Lovino came to this school, it seemed like everything just faded into the background."

"Didn't it? By the way, it's Lovino's first time, isn't it?"

"Yes and for his sake, I hope it's peaceful this year."

"Ah don't worry; I'm sure Antonio will protect him if we get another reenactment."

Arthur frowned. "Personally, I think that he's being too clingy with Lovino. I can't count a day when he hasn't been with him."

"Yeah, it's not like him to be this clingy..." A silence played out for a while.

"Oh well, I suppose it's none of our business in the first place," Arthur heard the rustle of Nicolae's clothes as he shrugged. He probably wanted to say it but didn't want to say it out loud. "Well speaking of the Magic Club, you want to go plan something for us right now? I'll even make sure that Lukas comes too!"

"What a rarity it has become for us to see our Norwegian friend," Arthur let out a small laugh. "All right, but we'll have to hold it off for a while."

"Oh yeah it's almost you and Alfred's anniversary..." Nicolae trailed off with a thoughtful tone. "I can't believe you guys actually celebrate your anniversaries. That's usually a girl thing."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

Nicolae took in a sharp breath. "You guys are lucky to have been dating for so long," Arthur recognized the hasty change in subject, but didn't mind.

"It hasn't been that long."

"Two years is a pretty long time Arthur. I'm surprised that you guys even dated in the first place. Didn't you guys have some really huge fight or something when you were younger?"

Arthur bit his lip. Even though it was a long time ago, that fight was still a sore point for him. "It was a very poorly timed Revolutionary War pick," he stated simply. The room was tinted with orange, and it was then that he realized that he really should start leaving. Arthur sighed. "Ahh, in the end, I didn't get much done at all."

"Sorry for that," Nicolae scratched his head on the other side. "You could've hung up on me, y'know."

"It's fine," he started closing the screens. "All I've really got to worry about is Francis's choices."

"And your anniversary. Can't forget about that, eh?"

"Don't worry," Arthur shut down the computer and grabbed his stuff. "I won't."

'''''''

Arthur buried his head on his arms_. I can't believe this is happening to me right now... _He groaned as he bemoaned his unfortunate luck. Not only was he suddenly bombarded with student council work, but he couldn't get Alfred anything because he was too busy with student council work and homework_. I am a horrible boyfriend..._ Arthur sighed. He could either tell Alfred the truth or he could just avoid him and hope he could get a present for him before he noticed… He was going for the latter.

_But what should I get him...?_ Cooking was out of the question, and Alfred wasn't a fan of knit work...

A light poke was felt on his side. "Oi, you okay?" Lovino looked at him curiously. They had a free period at the moment, and Lovino was spending it by doing his history homework. On the other hand, Arthur had managed to finish his homework, but was much too agitated to rest. He sighed.

"You ever had to get someone a last minute gift the day that special occasion is on?" Lovino just quirked an eyebrow.

"You've got to be kidding me right?" He closed his textbook. "So what's the occasion?"

"Anniversary," he slumped down again. "I don't know what to get him at all..."

"Just tell him that you couldn't get him anything for whatever reason you have," Lovino shrugged. "I think he'll understand. It's only an anniversary after all."

_Is it really that odd for two males to celebrate those things?_ Arthur thought. _I should really stop writing fanfiction then seeing as how I was the one to suggest it. _"That may be the sensible thing to do, but I really want to make this special," Lovino tilted his head up in thought.

"Got it," Arthur looked at him. "Go look for a gift after school. I'll figure out a way to keep Alfred busy."

"Thanks Lovino," Arthur let out a small breath. "I just hope I'll be able to get him something."

'

Arthur picked up a rather cute teddy bear, placing it back on the shelf soon after.

_I doubt the boy wants a teddy bear..._ Arthur took one last glance at the brown stuffed animal before leaving the toy store. _That's more of my thing._

He stuffed his hands in his pockets, walking around town square in his school uniform. A circular fountain stood at the middle of the tan and red cobblestones that the square was made of. Various shops were lined around the outside of the plaza as well as the four paths that branched out. People were milling about, the mood in the area calm in the partially cloudy day.

_If only I could give him toys like I used to..._ When they were younger, Arthur would normally give Alfred things like toy soldiers. Among other things though, he eventually grew out of it, so toys were out of the question. _If only I had more time... Maybe I could've gotten him something better..._ He sat down on a nearby bench, suddenly feeling very tired. His head started to bob as he fell more into sleep, only for a voice to wake him up.

"Ah, if it isn't my favorite little Englishman," Arthur looked up to see a familiar French teen smirking down upon him. He was also wearing his uniform, telling Arthur that he had come to the town square immediately after school as well. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Sod off Francis," he crossed his arms as Francis claimed the spot right next to him. "I have better things to do than deal with you right now."

"Don't be like that," he tried to sling his arm around his shoulder, only to be greeted with a death glare. "Can't two friends converse naturally?"

Arthur narrowed his eyes at him. "You're in an awfully good mood today. Normally, we'd be punching each other by now."

"Ah, but violence is unacceptable if love is in the air."

_I should've known._ Arthur sighed. "Who's the girl you hooked up with this time?" Francis wagged a finger at him while making disapproving noises.

"Seeing as how you plan on majoring in English, I believe you could have used better terminology than 'hooking up'" he leaned back on the bench. "And I'll leave you to guess who she is."

Arthur raised an eyebrow. Usually, Francis would brag about whatever beauty he was dating this time. _She must be very special for him to be like this…_ Suddenly, a thought came up on his mind. "Don't tell me that it's…" Francis nodded, knowing by the tone of his voice who Arthur was talking about. "But I thought she was moving back to France at the end of the year." The other let out a breath as he looked up at the sky.

"Which is why I want to spend as much time with her now as I can," he said simply. He turned to Arthur. "So what are you doing here? With the way things are now, I'm surprised you're still awake after all the work we've been given."

"Work that you just pushed off to me," Arthur said irritably. "Did you at least pick the seven choices from the choice pool that we need for the event?"

"Ah, about that…"

"Get it done by the end of this week or I'll make sure that you won't be able to take one _step_ outside of that office."

"How cruel," Francis smiled. "Don't worry, I'll get it done. By the way," he looked straight-on at Arthur's eyes. "You never really did answer my question."

"What, a man can't shop in privacy?" Arthur pushed his face out of the way. "If you must know, then I'm getting something for Alfred. I've been too busy lately to get anything for our anniversary, something I _could_ have done if a certain someone wasn't pushing his work on to me," he glared at the other, who just shrugged.

"It's for a good cause. And if you didn't do my work, then who would?" Francis spread his hands out in an 'I-don't-know' expression. "As for what to get your little American, I'm sure that nothing is acceptable."

Arthur recalled all the times Francis gave a gift to those he liked. "You're one of the last people I'd have thought to say that."

"I say that because he's right there," Arthur looked up to see Francis pointing at a rather disheveled Alfred walking up to them, his school uniform dark with dirt. He emitted a forbidding aura and when he finally reached them, fixing them with an annoyed glare.

"You know, I thought something was up when Gilbert had started attacking me with an army of fluffy birds," he stared daggers into Francis. "Francis, I don't have much against you, but just what are you doing to my boyfriend on the day of our anniversary?"

Francis held his hands up. "_Rien (Nothing)_. I was merely having a pleasant conversation with him," he gulped as Alfred continued to glare at him. He stood up and adjusted his tie. "I suppose I'll take my leave now," he smirked down at Arthur. "I wish you luck Kirkland."

"Just do your work already Bonnefoy."

Francis chuckled as he left. Arthur looked back up at Alfred, who was standing over him with a 'you-better-have-an-explanation-for-this' expression on his face.

"Guess I was caught red-handed," Arthur patted down the spot next to him. He turned to Alfred as the other sat down. "I'm sorry I couldn't get you anything today. I got a bit caught up with student council work, so I tried to get you something real quick. I suppose I failed though, didn't I?"

"Artie…" Alfred frowned. "Didn't I tell you that I just want you with me? I'm not always won over with gifts. Plus, you bought me AC3 ages ago, so that could be your gift for me!"

"I was a bit reluctant to get you that version actually," Arthur shook his head. "Honestly, of all historical events to focus on…"

Alfred threw his arms around him and brought him closer. "I thought we agreed to move past that time…" he smiled somewhat nostalgically. "We've gone a long way, haven't we?"

Arthur let out a small laugh. "Stop making me feel older than I already am. I'm not even in college and you make me feel as if I'm centuries old," he sighed and just leaned on the other. "But yes, I suppose we have."

They just sat there in silence, each one just enjoying the moment. Finally, Alfred gave him a small grin. "That reminds me…" He took a deep breath.

_Arthur_

_Workaholic, Stubborn_

_Always the gentleman_

_I really love him_

_Heart_

Arthur looked at Alfred curiously. "Was that the didactic version of a cinquain?" Alfred laughed.

"To tell you the truth, I didn't know what to get you either but when I found Lovino and had him told me where you were, I got the idea of giving you a poem. Since poetry isn't my forte, I used the children's version," he looked at him with bright blue eyes. "Do you like it?"

"I don't know if I should be mad at you for not getting me anything until now, but that would be rather hypocritical of me, wouldn't it?" Arthur smiled a little bit. "What does that 'heart' part at the end mean?"

"That you're my heart of course!" Arthur blinked at the American's simple yet sincere words. A blush crept up to his cheeks.

"I-i-i-idi-" Alfred laughed as he hugged him.

"Happy anniversary Arthur."

"Idiot," Arthur looked away, his face aflame.

"Happy anniversary to you too."

* * *

><p><em>Now that I think about it, if this story was set up in arcs, then chapters 1-4 would be "Meeting Arc"; 5-7 "Build-Up Arc"; and 8, Filler, and Gift would be "Holiday Arc" (I'm so good at naming, aren't I? XD) To keep you guys interested, I'll tell you what I would name the next 'arc': "Reveal Arc"<em>

_(Side note: I doubt I'll update for a while seeing as how I just received my version of AC3 that I pre-ordered on my birthday in JANUARY. Yes, I was waiting THAT long for that game XD Anyways, hoped you like this addition and I hope you stick around for the next- and finally central plot related- update!)_


	11. Events and Why This School is Crazy

Lovino made his way through the small crowd, determined to find his friends. At the end of the day, an announcement came that it was time to pick the event for whatever they were picking an event for. Lovino didn't know what was going on but apparently everyone else did. For a while now, the school had been alight with excitement but whenever Lovino asked what the deal was, nobody would answer. All of them said some variation of "it's better if you experience it yourself" or "you'll see". Not even Antonio was willing to tell Lovino what was going on, only saying that "no matter what happens, I'll make sure you're okay". Those words didn't do anything to alleviate Lovino's curiosity, but instead, increased it.

Despite the fact that there weren't many students in the school, the assembly hall was packed like sardines. Groups were all over the large room, either standing near the tall and red-curtained windows or sitting down on the chairs that were lined up in front of the stage. For some reason, nobody was on the stage itself, the wooden podium abandoned and the chairs where the teachers would sit empty. The school crest was hung on the wall behind the podium, the words _World Academy W_ written in fancy script.

It took a while before Lovino found Nicolae, Damyan, Alfred, and Matthew standing near the window near the stage, nearly hidden from view. "Hey!" The conversation stopped between the four as they turned towards the sound of Lovino's voice. "Do you know what's going on?"

"What are you talking abou-? Oh yeah, you're new here…" Alfred rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry man, it's like you've been with us forever. I forgot that you know nothing about this…"

"Yeah, so can one of you please explain what the hell is going on?" Lovino all but demanded. "No one answers me when I ask them!"

"That's because it's the biggest event of the school year," Matthew said. "They probably expected you to know about it or wanted to keep it a surprise for you."

"It's probably the thing that defines this school," Nicolae added. "Every year, the Student Council would pick a school-approved choice of something from or related to history. Once they do, we make an event out of it."

"So we're basically reenacting history?" Lovino saw nothing exciting about that. Matthew chuckled.

"Not all of them are reenactments. For example, we had a Shakespeare draw one year and we acted out some of his plays. It was a bit awkward though, when some of the guys had to play the roles of the female love interests," Matthew's eyes shone. "It was pretty interesting actually."

"Are you kidding me? I don't want to see another guy in a dress in my life…" Alfred shuddered. "Personally, I think the trivia competitions are better than those plays… but the reenactments are the best, there's no doubt about that."

"Yeah some of the reenactments were pretty good, like the Revolutionary War one," Damyan cast a glance at Alfred, who was suddenly interested in a quarreling group far away from them. "The pirate one was probably the most intense one though."

"_Probably?_" Alfred quirked an eyebrow. "There's a _reason _the school became a little more careful with the draws."

"No kidding," Matthew shook his head in agreement. "I bet that's the main reason why Arthur and Antonio to hate each other so much."

"Just why _do_ they hate each other so much?" Antonio never did tell Lovino why he hated his British friend so much. He would only frown and then change the subject, telling Lovino that it was all in the past. Matthew bit his lip.

"Well, let's just say that-"

"Everyone, please get to your seats!" The group turned to see the principal standing at the podium. "We will now choose an event!"

"Come on," Damyan tugged on Lovino's sleeve. "We should go sit down."

"But what about-?"

"I'll tell you about it later," Nicolae looked ready to burst from excitement. "But right now, we should go sit down."

'

Lovino sat on a seat in one of the center rows. Students around him clamored to get good seats, some even fighting for front row seats. At the moment, Matthew was seated at his left and no one was at Lovino's right. Alfred sat next to Matthew and behind Lovino were Nicolae and Damyan. Lovino turned to Nicolae.

"Explain," Nicolae shooed him with his hand.

"I may be your living exposition guy, but it doesn't mean that I'm available at all times," he said quickly. "Really, I'll tell you when it's all done."

"Sorry 'bout that Lovino," Damyan said apologetically. "Nicolae gets really into this event since Arthur gets him to help him plan it all the time."

"It's fine," Lovino sighed and tried to hide his disappointment. _I'll just bug Toni about it later… Now that I think about it, Toni doesn't talk about himself much, does he?_ He turned back to the front. All students were now seated somewhere.

"I wonder when this'll start…" Lovino murmured to himself.

"Pretty soon, I bet," Lovino jumped up a bit at the unexpected voice. He turned to his right to see Antonio smiling pleasantly at him. "This is your first time, right Lovi? Don't worry, I'm sure that it will be really fun this year!"

"When'd you get here? !" Lovino asked, his quickened breath slowing after he calmed down. Antonio tilted his head.

"Just now. It took a while for me to find you. Why, do you not want me here?" Lovino sighed.

"Idiot, just don't give me heart-attacks when you appear."

"Alright," they turned back to the front as the principal called for their attention. He had started going on a speech of the event and its traditions, most of which bored Lovino to death. He ended up leaning on Antonio's shoulder and napped, something Lovino knew Antonio wouldn't let him forget anytime soon.

Soon, a hand was shaking him awake. "Lovi," Antonio whispered as Lovino blinked away the sleep in his eyes. "The speech is done. Kirkland's up on the stage now."

Lovino got off Antonio's shoulder and looked up. Arthur had now taken the principal's stage, with the rest of the Student Council now standing on the wall behind him next to the teachers. Francis was standing next to Arthur, a white box with a slot on his hands.

"For this year, it was our Vice President's turn to select the choices for the events," Arthur turned to Francis. "And now it is time to draw for this school year's event."

The tension in the room seemed to rise dramatically as Arthur stuck his right hand into the slot. A lengthy moment of silence came as Arthur shuffled around the box. Finally, Arthur took out his hand, a folded piece of paper in his hands. He turned back to the expectant crowd.

"For this year, the event shall involve-" Arthur, who was speaking as he opened the paper, looked down and froze. Murmurs of apprehension rippled through the crowd as Arthur just stood there staring dumbfounded at the paper. Eventually, Arthur grabbed the mike in front of the podium, feedback echoing through the room as he angrily turned to Francis.

"…idiot! Why in the world did you…!"

"Arthur, calm down! It was an…"

"…in the world was it an accident…? ! Just what…"

"Gilbert… there and helped me choose… swear, it wasn't me who placed it in…!"

"Just what are they arguing about?" Lovino turned to Antonio as snippets of their argument was heard throughout the room. Antonio shrugged nonchalantly.

"Probably the choice Kirkland chose isn't a good one. I'm sort of curious to know what it is actually…"

"Oh yeah," Lovino suddenly remembered about the pirate draw he had heard about. "Is it true that pirates were drawn once?"

"The proper term is privateers," Antonio corrected. "Kirkland would say so too. It's one of the few things we agree on. As for that draw…" Antonio gave a sheepish smile and looked away. "Let's just say that I was a bit… 'rambunctious' back then."

"How rambunctious?"

To Lovino's annoyance, Arthur and Francis seemed to have sorted out their fight before Antonio could answer. Everyone turned back to the stage as Arthur cleared his throat.

"Well it seems that this year's choice is… is…" Arthur cleared his throat again and then mumbled something on the mike, his ears a cherry red. "Uh, err, I mean…"

"Just get on with it aru!"

"So what is it?"

"Hurry up Kirkland!" To Lovino's surprise, Antonio called out as well. "For an English buff, I didn't think that you were incapable of saying a single phrase without stammering!"

"Will you shut it Carriedo? !" Arthur snapped, apparently having only heard Antonio over the din. "I beat your sorry little arse once, I can do it again!"

"Is that a challenge? !" Antonio stood up from his seat, making him stand out amongst the seated students. Lovino looked up at him, surprised to see him smirking. "I'm happy to take you up on it then!"

"Good, because the next event involves privateers!"

The clamor afterwards was indescribable. The students seemed to have three different reactions to this news: some were panicking or fidgeting uncomfortably while others started to plan for the best hiding places or were making elaborate plans to get sick by the day of the event. For the most part though, most seemed to have started making bets on who they thought was going to win. The teachers tried to calm down the now-standing students, but it wasn't helping that the Student Council President was as unruly as them.

"Of all the draws…" Matthew shook his head, not making a move from his seat. "And here I wanted to believe that it would be a quiet one this year…"

"Man, Artie's fired up…" Alfred observed as he watched his boyfriend argue with Francis, who was trying to calm the other down. His face was filled with amusement as he stood up to get a look of the stage.

"He's not the only one fired up…" Damyan turned to Nicolae, who was busy collecting bets from other students. He turned back to Lovino. "Who are you rooting for?"

"That's an easy one," Antonio sat down and turned to Damyan. "Lovi will be rooting for me, _si?_"

"I think I'll abstain in this one," Lovino said bluntly. Antonio pouted.

"Loviiiiiii," Antonio hugged him from the side and looked up at him with a frown. "I know Kirkland is your friend, but you're _mi querido (my dear)… _It'd tear me apart having to go against you…"

"Honestly…" Lovino blushed and looked away as he tried to push the other off. "You make it sound like I'm choosing between sides in a war…"

"That's because you are!" Antonio refused to move. "We started with reenacting a part of the Anglo-Spanish War before but then it turned into a game. We'll probably do the same this year because it was so popular, so we'll most likely be divided into groups and then have to 'loot' as much teams as possible. Last time, Kirkland and I were tied and we went for each other's treasure and it all went downhill from there!"

"You lost?" _No wonder Antonio doesn't like Arthur,_ Lovino thought as he looked at his childish boyfriend. _He hates losing anything. _Antonio narrowed his eyes at him.

"_Si_, and I refuse to this year," he looked up to Lovino with darkened green eyes. "So you'll be in my team… right?"

"Err…" Lovino looked away again. "This all sounds dangerous. I mean, we're 'looting'... don't we have to attack each other for that?"

"Don't worry," Nicolae leaned forward to talk to them. "Cameras are set up everywhere, so if we hurt someone too much, we're automatically pulled out. Even though this school is pretty lax, this time of the year is the only time where absolutely _nothing_ out of line will be tolerated. One kid actually got suspended for giving someone the bird, even though we do stuff like that other times in the year as well."

"So you're perfectly safe!" Antonio concluded. "Plus, I'll be there to make sure that nothing happens to you. So will you be in my group?"

"Well…" Personally, Lovino wanted no part of the whole thing, but seeing as how he was dating Antonio and how he was friends with Arthur… "Mayb-"

"Everyone, sit down!" One of the teachers managed to get a hold of the mike on the podium. The other teachers herded Arthur and Francis, who was arguing nearby, to where the other Student Council Members were by. On the other hand, the students who were standing up froze for a fraction of a second, and then sat back down in their original seats. The teacher at the podium cleared their throat. "Now that that's over with, it is now up to the Student Council to prepare the event. The event will probably be held next week. Until then, classes will resume as normal. Dismissed!"

At the dismissal, everyone stood up and left in a flash. The moment they left the door, the crowd separated into their little groups, almost everyone milling around. In the meantime, Lovino was yet again looking for his friends, having lost them in the crowd. A hand grabbed his sleeve and he was yanked into a corner.

"Wha-? !" Lovino turned around to see that it was Arthur who had brought him out of the crowd. "Arthur, what are you doing? !"

Arthur let go of Lovino and faced with him with a burning intensity in his emerald green eyes. "Lovino, I know you're dating that moron, but I need you on my team!"

"What… Why is everyone asking me? !" Lovino threw his arms up. "Toni just asked me a while ago to be in his team, and now you?"

"You don't get it Lovino," Arthur said matter-of-factly. "If you're in my team, then Carriedo will think twice on aiming for us. That will give us an advantage!"

"It makes sense but it doesn't make me feel any better! I _really_ rather not be a part of this!" The mere thought of being caught up in between the two's rivalry was terrifying. "Look Arthur, you're my friend and all, but I don't think I can join your team!"

"Are you sure that-?"

"_I'm sure_."

Arthur scratched his head. "By now I'd let you go on your merry way, but knowing Carriedo, he'll probably get you on his side no matter what. It doesn't change much if you're in his team, but I want that advantage. Err, if you're okay with it," he sighed. "Are you _positive_ that you want to stay out of this?"

"_Positive. _If there's anything I know, then it's not to get in between your rivalr-"

"Lovi!" Lovino staggered forward as Antonio glomped him from behind. "Are you okay? I lost you in the crowd and-" He narrowed his eyes as if he just noticed that Arthur was there. "Oh. You were with Kirkland," his voice lost all emotion that he normally had and dropped to a deadpan tone. "I don't see why you're friends with him Lovi- you can do so much better."

"It's true Lovino," Lovino stared at Arthur like he was crazy. Despite being insulted at, Arthur managed to keep his composition. "Personally, I don't see why you're even going out with Carriedo… you can do much better than that after all."

_These two are impossible._ Lovino thought as Antonio and Arthur glowered at each other. He cleared his throat. "I'll leave you two alone. I'd rather not be in the middle of your crossfire."

"I'm sorry Lovino," Antonio said apologetically. "At any rate, we should be going. I don't want Kirkland to be listening on our team's battle strategy after all."

"I believe you're mistaken; if Lovino's going to be a part of any group, it will be mine," Arthur crossed his arms. "Do you honestly believe that Lovino can stand being around your crowd for more than five seconds? There's a _reason_ he prefers our company more than yours."

"Arthur, isn't that a bit too mu-?"

"Oh?" Antonio's eyes glittered dangerously. "You sure are fighting hard just to have my Lovi in your team- I wonder what Alfred would think if he heard about this."

"Antonio, that was a bit out of li-"

"Leave Alfred out of this," Arthur narrowed his eyes. "Although I wouldn't put it past you to stoop to such low levels."

"Hey, are you two listening to m-?"

"Low levels? Is that what you're calling it now?" Antonio's tone was mockingly amused. "You weren't so spotless back then either Kirkland."

"Seriously, can you guys just listen to m-?"

"Funny, I don't remember my lackeys ever having to-"

"OI!" Both teens turned towards Lovino. "Will you guys stop fighting already? It's giving me a fucking headache!"

"We wouldn't be having this argument if you would just pick already," Arthur said curtly. "Are you really going to pick this idiot over your friend?"

"Do you really have to decide over 'this idiot' and your so-called 'friend'?" Antonio gave Arthur a dirty look. "Knowing _him,_ he's probably going to use you as an advantage over me."

"Ugh…" Lovino looked between the feuding teens. _I doubt I can get out of this… But if I pick one, the other will hate me for who-knows-how-long… _Mio Dio,_ I just _had _to know the two people involved in this whole thing... _"Can't I just not-?"

"No," they spoke simultaneously. Lovino sighed.

"I figured." _Of all the times I need my friends to interfere, _none_ of them are here._ "Well…" he heaved a breath. "I… err…" _I'm sorry for this. _

"Sorry Arthur, but I think I might have to go with Antonio on this." He finally said, after deciding which one would be the least angry if he went with the other. Antonio lit up and hugged him harder as Arthur just stared blankly at him. "Get off me!" Lovino tried to push Antonio off of him, but he clung to him like tape.

"I knew you'd make the right choice!" Antonio gave a smug look to Arthur. Oddly enough, Arthur was impassive.

"Well, I suppose that's that," Arthur shrugged. "The event will probably take place next Monday," he started to walk away. "I hope you'll know what you're doing by then," he said, not turning back to face them.

"I wonder what that's supposed to mean," Antonio frowned. "Anyways, I'm sure that this will be an interesting year."

"No kidding," Lovino said as Arthur disappeared into the crowd.

''''''''

"You're not going to wear that ridiculous get-up once the game starts, are you?"

Antonio turned to him and flashed him a smile. The crimson coat swished beautifully as he moved, the intricate golden designs gleaming a bit. Under the coat, he wore a long-sleeved dress shirt and a cravat, a necklace with a cross over that. He wore heavy black boots over his brown pants; to top it all, he had a nice dark red hat with feathers attached to them. Tied around his left arm was a red cloth, a similar cloth on Lovino's arm. "Silly Lovi, don't you remember that I was in my friend's play? I would never wear something as flashy like this in such an important tournament."

"Good," Lovino was looking away, watching the students leave the auditorium. They were standing outside on the hallway, Lovino for once not in the main building. His arms were crossed, his back on the wall as he avoided looking at Antonio. "It's way too distracting."

A hand gripped his chin, forcing Lovino to look up. "Does Lovi find me distracting?" Antonio asked with a smile, his face unbearably close to Lovino's own.

"Sh-shut up," Antonio only chuckled at his response. "When's this event going to start anyways?" From what he'd been told, the classes would host other activities that were somewhat related to privateers, such as the play Antonio's cute Belgian friend made. The classes would hold those activities until the announcement for the real event would start. Antonio let go of his chin and thought.

"I have no idea actually. From what Francis told me, the event starts at a random time. You see, they have this alarm and then at some point of the day, it would ri-"

_RRRRRRINNNNNGGGG!_

"…ng," Lovino could barely hear Antonio over the alarm. "I suppose it's time for the game to start."

"What about the parents?" Even though Romulus was pretty healthy, Lovino didn't want anything happening to him. "Won't one of them get hurt?"

"_The main event will now begin," _A female voice with a French accent spoke on the PA. "_All parents must go over to the assembly hall to minimize interference with the event. Students must abide by event rules at all costs; no fatal or severe bodily harm can be caused, no traumatizing verbal abuse used, or any action that is dubious in the slightest and/or breaks any of the school rules will be allowed. Thank you, and have a nice day."_

"Does that answer your question?" Antonio didn't wait for his answer. "I'm going to miss Jeanne once she goes back to France… A nice person, she was," he sighed. "Oh well, I might as well look for Francis and Gilbert," the day before, Antonio had registered his team for the event, which consisted of himself, Lovino, and Francis and Gilbert. "Don't want them to be captured too early."

"Captured?"

"Yeah, captured," Antonio scratched the back of his head. "You know that red cloth on your arm?" Lovino nodded. "When a person takes it off of you, you get 'captured'. When you're captured, then the other team tells Jeanne via walkie-talkie that you captured so-and-so. She'll then announce who has been captured so the other team would know who can't play."

"So once you're captured, you're out?"

"Not really. More like you're temporarily out of the game until you take that team's loot. Any other questions?"

"Nah, you should go look for your friends already," Antonio gaped at him.

"But Lovi, aren't you coming with me?" He was frowned worriedly at him. "I don't want you to be caught."

"I can handle myself you know," Still, Lovino did have to admit that the Spanish man's nice tendencies was rather endearing. "I'll go over to where our loot is hidden," Before the game, each team hid their loot at a certain place since they couldn't actually be holding the treasure. Because of that, once the game started, most teams had someone guard the loot. The 'loot' itself turned out to be a remote, which had a button to press that would send a certain signal; once the button was pressed, someone at the Student Council Room (probably Jeanne) would announce the team that had just lost.

"Are you sure about that Lovi?" Antonio still looked distressed. "I'd feel better if you were with me…"

"I'll be fine," Lovino made a shooing motion. "Just go look for your friends. I mean, can't you trust me to guard a remote?"

"Well…" Antonio heaved a deep breath. "Fine, but do whatever's allowed in the rules to avoid danger. If I hear Jeanne's voice saying that you're captured, I don't know what I'd do."

"Just go already Toni, I'll be fine," Lovino put on a little smile to drive the point home. "Really, what's the worst that could happen?"

"I suppose… Well, I'll be going now," Antonio gave Lovino a hug.

"What was that for? !" Lovino asked when Antonio let go, heat rising up to his face.

"You look so cute when you blush~" Antonio turned around and then started to sprint. "Take care Lovi!" he called out, not looking behind him. Eventually he took a right turn, his figure vanishing from sight. Lovino turned and walked the other way.

"Honestly, I don't get that guy…" He muttered to himself, his face still a bit red from the hug. "But I don't see why he's so worried. Most teams would probably be over in the main building; I mean, who in their right mind would be in the auditorium?"

"That would be me."

Lovino only had time to turn around to face whoever had spoken behind him. He felt the cloth on his arm slip off as a familiar face greeted him.

'

"_Questo è imbarazzante (This is embarrassing),"_ Lovino stated as he sulked. Nicolae let out a hearty laugh.

"Lighten up Lovino! You're still a newbie, so it's fine if you got captured so early in the event!" He patted him on the back. "But are you sure you won't tell us where Antonio's loot is?"

"I may have been stupid enough to be captured, but I'm not stupid enough to tell you that," he looked at his friend. "And didn't you say that you were in that Russian's team?"

"He managed to talk himself out of it," Damyan answered. "Ivan normally doesn't allow compromises, but Nicolae made him an offer he can't refuse."

"Which is?"

"Does it matter?" Alfred, who was sitting on a chair nonchalantly, suddenly spoke up. "He's in our team now and that's that. It's a bit too bad, though, that we're enemies Lovino."

"I agree- it would have been much better if you had joined my team from the start," While the rest of them were wearing their school uniforms, Arthur was wearing similar clothes as Antonio, having also performed in a play. He wore a navy blue coat with dark red and gold cuffs. His coat was closed and buttoned, a simpler but puffier cravat hanging on his chest. Brown boots was worn over his black pants, and to finish the look, Arthur wore a dark blue hat that also had feathers hanging off it. At the moment, Arthur was pacing around the room. "Although I have to admit that this particular move isn't that strategic. I can't use you as a hostage and you won't admit where Carriedo's loot is, so it's not really in my favor having you captured. I suppose I can just take this as revenge for not choosing to join my team."

"Gee Arthur, thanks," Lovino rolled his eyes. "But I can't believe your headquarters is the Magic Club Room. That's a bit too obvious, don't you think?"

"Not really," Nicolae leaned back on his chair. "The only other person who knows about this place is Lukas, and I doubt Matthias's team will be focusing on us. Ever since Halloween, they've struck up quite a rivalry with Ivan's team, so their battle will be fought elsewhere."

"And it's not like we hid our loot here, so it's fine," Alfred shrugged. "We just met up here since everyone from our team knows where this is."

"Speaking of people in your team, isn't Matthew in your team too?" The soft-spoken Canadian wasn't in the room as far as Lovino knew. "Where is he?"

"When Nicolae had called us over here with his walkie-talkie so that we can decide what to do with you, we were all over the school," Arthur explained. "We were looking for other teams and Matthew had been sent to where we believed the most teams were. He's pretty good at staying hidden, so he's a bit like our trump card."

"He should be coming back soon though," Nicolae frowned. "We didn't send him too far and-"

"Guys…" Everyone turned to the door as Matthew closed it. He sounded out of breath. "I think we have a problem."

"What is it bro?" Alfred got up immediately. "You didn't get followed here, did you?"

"No, I managed to lose him, but-"

"Wait, lose who?" Arthur stopped pacing.

"Francis. I ran in to him on my way here, but I managed to get rid of him… but that's not the point! The point is that-"

"Sorry to interrupt, but where did you run into him?" Damyan asked. "And did he have any of his teammates with him?"

"In a hallway and as far as I know, no, but anyways," Matthew walked forward to them and took something from his pocket. "Look at this!"

"It looks like a paper cut to look like a tomato," Alfred said as Matthew placed down just that. "Wait a minute…"

Matthew nodded. "Francis gave it to me before he almost captured me. He said something about Antonio giving it to him before bolting off to someplace after hearing the announcement, but that's not important. What you guys _should_ be paying attention to is what's written on this note."

"I'll read it," Lovino took the paper and started to read the words written on it, recognizing his boyfriend's handwriting.

_Kirkland, you must surely have a death wish_

_For what you did is unforgivable_

_Now the cannons will roar, for this means war_

Silence came after the short yet ominous poem. Finally, Nicolae spoke.

"I _really_ shouldn't have captured you."

* * *

><p><em>Merry Christmas everyone! For Christmas, I'll be uploading each one of my stories and putting up 2 one-shots, so I hope you like them! (I didn't upload at all this month since I was saving them for today).<em>

_I'm sorry for my failed poem, but hey, event chapter! As I said last chapter, this is the start of the final arc of the story. That's right, this story is ending soon! Well not soon since there's quite a number of plot for me to go through, but this is the last stretch! I hope you stick around 'til then!_

_P.S. Used Translate. Please correct if necessary._

_P.P.S. This was totally not an excuse just to have Pirate!England and Pirate!Spain show up. Seriously. Carry on, carry on, nothing to see here…_


	12. Events and Why This School is Crazy (2)

_Sorry for the long wait! Life happened and so did a massive case of writer's block. Still going through it now, but hey, I had a glimmer of inspiration and I'm taking it. Plus, I felt like updating something on my birthday, so enjoy!_

_P.S. The new Hetalia season arrived already! They really amped up the cuteness, didn't they? Not that I don't mind though XD_

_P.P.S I seriously apologize for my horrendous ability in writing fight scenes. It's probably even worse than the one I wrote for King's Game. Seriously, I'm sorry._

* * *

><p>"So what are we going to do chief?"<p>

They all turned to Arthur, who was holding his chin in a thoughtful position. "We fight back of course," he said at last.

"Nicolae, Damyan, I need you two to go protect our remote. Normally I would have assigned this to someone else, but seeing as we hid our remote in a place where many will be at, I'll need you two's skills."

"No problem, we have this. You up for it Damyan?" Nicolae turned to his partner with a grin on his face. Damyan sighed, but was also smiling.

"You are _way_ too excited for this thing… Just don't let it get to your head, alright?"

"Noted."

"Continuing on," Arthur cleared his throat. "Matthew, I'm going to need you to look for the other teams' remote."

"What?" The Canadian was surprised. "Chances are, they'll have their strongest man there. While I _can_ fight, don't you think Alfred is better suited for the job?"

"As you said yourself, you can fight plus you have the advantage of being unseen. You could easily slip pass and steal their loot."

"Well yeah, but wouldn't it be better to-?"

"I need Alfred for something else." Arthur interrupted the other with an apologetic glance. He turned to Alfred.

"I need you to stay here with me and Lovino," he said bluntly. Alfred looked at him oddly.

"You plan on staying here?" Arthur nodded.

"It's about time Carriedo and I came face to face, and I don't plan to accept his challenge with my tail in between my legs."

Matthew chuckled. "Seems like Alfred has really rubbed off on you, didn't he?"

"This is touching and all." Everyone's eyes turned to Lovino as he spoke, his arms crossing in front of his chest. "But that doesn't change the fact that I'm being imprisoned here against my will."

"Not exactly, we're just following the rules of the game. I don't know if anyone has told you this already, but when a team captures someone from another team, the captured person has to stay near that team until that team's loot is stolen."

"You can't help your team or steal our loot while you're captured, so you're pretty much powerless," Alfred added. "So yeah, you're basically stuck with us."

"Doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Who said you should?" Nicolae teased. "So are we going or not?"

Lovino sighed as the others started to leave, going wherever Arthur had assigned them. _I wonder how this game will go._ He mused. _I'm glad that I don't have to fight, but how will they fight in the first place? _They couldn't do too much damage to each other, so how was it possible to keep enemies away?

He sat down on a nearby desk as Arthur and Alfred talked about the game. Something caught his eye.

_Huh?_ Lovino watched as Matthew closed the door behind him. _Did something pass by Matthew just now?_

He shrugged. _Eh, probably just my imagination._

''''''

"Did you deliver the letter, Francis?"

The walkie-talkie crackled as the other answered back. "_Oui,_ I gave it to little _Matthieu._"

"Good. Heh, Kirkland has some nerve performing such a dirty trick like that."

"I doubt it was on purpose _mon ami_. He may have been planning to capture your little treasure sometime during the game, but it wouldn't have benefited him to capture him so early."

"I don't care if it was on purpose or by accident; he has him and I need him back."

"You really are rather possessive of that boy, aren't you? …Have you told him yet?"

"I plan to on the right time, but right now I'm more interested in getting him back. Speaking of which, Gilbert, did you figure out their whereabouts?"

"_Nein, _but I have a few hunches. Man, if only security wasn't so tight this time of the year; I could've hacked into the security system or something and found them through there."

"Didn't you almost get caught doing that?"

"Shut up about that Francis, that was _one_ time."

"Will you two quit it? There are more important things we need to do."

"No need to be mad at us Antonio; it's Eyebrows and his group that you should be aiming for. Anyways, they're either wherever their loot is at, where our loot is at, or this little-known room where some club meets."

"How'd you get that information?"

"A little birdy told me."

"Do you mean Gilbi-?"

"Does it matter? They could be there and that's that. Francis, I need you to protect our remote. I'd give this job to Gilbert, but he tends to go overboard sometimes and I don't want that place destroyed."

"What's that supposed to me-?"

"You can leave it to me. After all, I shudder at the thought of anyone ruining _that_ place. How about you?"

"I'm getting to that. Gilbert, you'll go scout around for wherever their remote is at. I know you can hold your own, so I doubt I need to worry about you."

"You make it sound like you're assuring yourself more than me, but I get ya. That leaves you with the club room, doesn't it?"

"Kirkland isn't dumb enough to stick around in a place everyone knows when people are looking for him, so he's most likely at the place where there are less people."

"True, true. Well anyways, here are the directions to that place…"

''''''

"Shoot."

Damyan turned to Nicolae, who was looking past the bend of the corridor. They could hear people ahead, although both were ignoring the sounds of battle between whoever was fighting. Or at least, they were trying to.

"By the sounds of it, I'd guess that-"

A hanger whizzed by, hitting the wall and falling flat on the floor. Nicolae looked at it for a fraction of a second and then sighed.

"Natalia really goes crazy with her weapons, doesn't she? I'd hate to see what would happen if she was given knives…"

"Sounds like she's against Matthias too." Damyan took in a sharp breath. "Sheesh, what luck we have. Of all the teams we had to run into, it just had to be the only two teams that could actually pose a threat."

"Don't worry; I'm here to protect you." Damyan punched the other lightly on his arm.

"Yeah right," he scoffed. "It'll probably be the other way around." Nicolae grinned.

"Wanna bet on it?"

"That would be a waste of money."

The two waited until the noise died down. Finally, Nicolae spoke.

"They're gone," he stated, looking past the corner. He whistled. "Wow. That's a lot of hangers."

They walked past the corridor. Hangers were strewn around the floor; one was left to wonder how many Natalia could hold on her person.

"I can't believe that no one has found our remote yet," Damyan mused as they walked forward. "Let's just hope that it stays that way. It's already bad enough that we're in the Nordic and Slavic groups' battleground, but to have them fight where our remote is? Now that's just too much."

"Yeah, especially since Ivan might be around." Nicolae shivered. "Can things get any worse?"

"_Students Matthias Densen and Natalia Arlovskaya from Team Matthias and Team Ivan respectively have been captured by a student from Team Antonio."_

The two paused as Jeanne's voice traveled throughout the school.

"That was… rather fast." Damyan looked around once the announcement was done. "Who captured them? They can't be too far away since those two were just here a little while ago."

A familiar laugh cackled nearby. Both of the students' blood froze, instantly recognizing who captured the other student.

"Remember that bet we almost made?" Nicolae spoke as he started to back away. "Well…"

"We'd both lose."

'

Matthew walked through the halls of the school. He was headed for the other classrooms, seeing as classrooms were popular hiding spots for remotes. Meanwhile, Kumajirou was asleep on the basket attached to his back, snuggled up right next to the cheap water gun he had hidden in the basket. He had left Kumajirou in the Magic Club room during school (nobody had noticed him there and he was asleep the whole time, so it was fine) but had decided to bring him along. He didn't regret that decision.

_There are times when I wish the Magic Club room wasn't so far away from everywhere else. _He thought. _It's both a good thing and a bad thing._ While it was harder to find the actual place, it made traveling around the school longer. _At least I haven't been seen so far._

It was a bit odd really. For some reason, not many people seemed to notice him. Back when he was younger, he was practically invisible; only very few could actually notice him. Over time, however, it seemed that people were finally managing to take notice of him more.

Of course, it still meant that he went unseen from time to time. In a game such as this though, that was an advantage.

_I wonder where everyone is?_ The school was admittedly huge, but the students' energy was even more. It was rare to find a place in the school where no one was at.

"_Students Matthias Densen and Natalia Arlovskaya from Team Matthias and Team Ivan respectively have been captured by a student from Team Antonio."_

The announcement came unexpectedly. Matthew jumped as the voice filled the hallway, but otherwise kept going.

_That was a surprise…_ Silence yet again engulfed him. _But for two students to be captured at the same time… and two rather deadly ones at that…_

"Nng…"

Matthew looked back. "Did that wake you up Kima?"

"Who are you?"

"I'll take that as a yes." Matthew sighed. His mind turned back to the announcement. "I wonder how Antonio's team managed to capture Natalia and Matthias? I doubt that they did so together; I'd be a fool to think that all three of them are in the same place… They're probably scattered around school looking for our remote…"

He quickened his pace. It was only a matter until their remote was found, but Matthew would rather have the other team down before that happened.

Something caught his eyes. Matthew slowed down as he neared the kitchen door, which was oddly open by the smallest margin. "Is there someone inside?"

He looked through the crack. His eyes widened at the fact that somebody was inside. And that they were clearly protecting something.

"Well then…" Matthew bit his lip. "That was faster than I thought."

'

"Alfred, take Lovino to a safe place."

Lovino, who had been spacing out until now, looked up sharply. "Excuse me?"

"We decided that we can't exactly have you here when Antonio comes." Alfred had two water guns with him, the ones you can buy at your local store for a buck. "And since we can't lose you out of our sight, I'll be taking you with me." He turned to Arthur. "Alpha, Beta, Omega, or Tony?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Arthur furrowed his eyebrows. "You mean where Lovino will hide? If I understand your ridiculous naming system, then go with Omega."

"You want to go with Omega?" Alfred quirked an eyebrow. "I really wanted to go along with Alpha, but you're the chief after all."

"He'll still find me though." Lovino didn't know what they were talking about, but he knew firsthand that when Antonio wanted something badly, he would fight tooth and nail for it. In this case, he really wanted Lovino back.

"What do you think I'll be doing?" Arthur took out a fake dagger, presumably a prop from the play. "While Alfred takes you somewhere safe, I'll be working as a decoy."

"Are you allowed to even do that?" Arthur scoffed.

"Technically, yes. It's what your boyfriend is doing is against the rules. The other team isn't allowed to take back their captured teammates until the captors' team's remote is taken."

"Still, do you really have to-?"

"No buts." Alfred herded him outside. "We captured you, so you have to follow what we say." He looked back to Arthur, who remained in the room. "Don't go too crazy."

Lovino turned back to see Arthur grinning. "Don't count on it."

Alfred closed the door.

'

_Lovino..._

Antonio sprinted through the hallways, intent on reaching his destination.

_I knew I should've stayed behind... _If Antonio had been there, then maybe Lovino wouldn't have been captured so early in the game. _Kirkland _really _has some nerve capturing him for revenge…_

He didn't know how long he's been running. An announcement came a while ago stating that two students had been captured by someone on his team (probably Gilbert), but Antonio didn't know how much time had passed since then.

Finally, he reached his destination. He slowed down to a stop as he reached the door to the 'Magic Club Room' (what kind of absurd club was that?). Arthur was there, leaning on the doorway as if it was as natural as breathing. At the sound of his footsteps, Arthur turned to him, a bored expression on his face.

"Took you long enough," he frowned. "Probably gave Alfred and Lovino enough time to get away."

At the mention of Lovino's name, Antonio stiffened. "What did you do to him?"

"You look as if I've taken him hostage." He shrugged. "Technically speaking, I sort of did, but I'm only following the rules…" he glanced at the other. "Which is more than I can say of some."

"Do you really think I care?"

"Of course not." He turned to him. "Well as you can see, Lovino isn't here and I don't think I'm obliged to tell you where he is."

"That's fine…" The gears of Antonio's mind started turning. _It's obvious that Kirkland is only here to distract me as the members of his team look for our remote. _Why else would the teen be standing here by himself? _I'm not sure how he knew that I would find him, but the bigger question here is…_

_Where did he hide Lovino?_

"'That's fine'?" Arthur was faintly surprised by the other's reply. "And here I thought you were going to threaten me or some other action-like event such as that…"

"How cliché, although I _am_ planning to see if I can get past you already so I can get back to finding Lovino."

Arthur got off the door and turned to him. "I'd like to see you try."

'

"Hey Francis, how are you holding up?"

Gilbert had the walkie-talkie in his hand as he walked around. He had left Matthias and Natalia in the Europe Group 2 classroom after he had caught them unawares and captured them (while the rules did state that those captured had to stay close to the team that captured them, the second Europe Group classroom was close enough to count). It took a while, but he managed to get them to tell him what they knew of remotes. Naturally they didn't reveal where their remotes were, but the reason they were fighting was because they had both found a remote in the Europe Group 1 classroom. Gilbert didn't know whose team's it was, but hey, there was still a chance that it was the other team's remote.

"As far as I know, everything is fine, although it seems as if a little bear is standing outside my doorway."

"Haha, see if you can do anything about it."

"Agreed."

"Ha!" Gilbert chuckled under his breath as the door to the Europe Group 1 classroom came into view. "What a short game! I can't believe it'll be this quick!"

Gilbert kept on chuckling as he grabbed the hand that suddenly went for the cloth on his arm. He grinned as he looked down at the startled face of one of his enemies.

"Hey Damyan, how are you?" The other looked at him with narrowed eyes.

"How'd you know I was there?"

"Please, I didn't take down Natalia and Matthias running on those kinds of instincts. By the way, where's Nicolae?" Even though he was smiling, Gilbert's nerves were on end. For all he knew, Nicolae could be hiding somewhere, waiting for the chance to strike Gilbert with a sneak-attack.

"Guarding our remote as I take you down." He used his other hand to reach for the other's arm cloth, but was stopped by Gilbert's other hand.

"So it's around here? What in the world went through you guys' minds hiding your remote in a place everyone will surely be?"

"Didn't you hear me? _Nicolae's_ guarding the remote. The man's main skill is hiding, so it doesn't matter if you capture me and go on ahead; you won't be able to find it."

"Don't worry." Gilbert reached for the cloth on his arm. "I have faith in my abilities on finding you guys' remote."

Before he could pull the cloth, however, sounds could be heard from behind him.

"Did we lose him?!"

"Stop running so fast, I could've easily taken him on!"

"Yeah well I'd rather not risk it, so run faster!"

The two turned to see Alfred and Lovino running towards them. Lovino halted to a stop when he saw them. "Damyan, you alright?!"

"Gee Lovino, I wonder if I am," he replied in a deadpan voice. "But what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"We saw Ivan and now he's chasing us since Lovino couldn't stand the thought of fighting him," Alfred was pouting, but he was looking behind him as well.

Meanwhile, Gilbert had frozen. _Oh shi-_ Gilbird beside him had his feathers puffed up. "Inside the classroom. That's the only chance we have." He didn't wait for the others' answers. He dragged Damyan with him inside the classroom, closing the door behind him once Alfred and Lovino were in.

"Well then," Gilbert turned to the others. "This is much easier."

"It's three-to-one, one of which you can't find, in a closed room. How is that easy?" Gilbert smiled at him.

"Damyan, it's either you three or Ivan, which do you think I would choose?"

"Well, Ivan's just one person so why would you-?"

_"Students Lukas Bondevik and Emil Steilsson from Team Matthias have been captured by a student from Team Ivan. Also, Team Matthias' has been eliminated by Team Ivan."_

"That answer your question Alfred? By the way Damyan, you're wrong about the three-to-one situation." He pulled the other's arm cloth away. "That's one down, and since Nicolae's currently in hiding…

"I guess it's just one-on-one now."

'

Arthur took cover behind some lockers as Antonio shot at him with a water gun he had hidden on him. So far, the two had managed to bring their 'little skirmish' a great deal away from the Magic Club room. From what he could tell, they were actually near the school kitchen by now.

He looked out and shot with his own water gun and then moved away. _Shoot, it's running out of water... _He noticed, looking at the frightfully low amount of water in it. There were probably one or two more shots left before he had to refill it.

Arthur ran ahead, only to nearly bump into Matthew. "Matthew!" He stopped before he could collide with the other, who was curiously drenched in water. "What happened to you?"

"Met up with Francis," he replied. His eyes turned to the water gun at his hands. "Need a refill? I'm sure I could squeeze out enough to fill it up to max."

"I'm good. But you ran into Bonnefoy? What's he doing here?"

"Their remote is in the kitchen," he jerked his head towards the kitchen as he spoke. "I sent Kuma in to look for it as I fought Francis, but-"

_"Student Damyan Nikolov from Team Arthur has been captured by a student from Team Antonio."_

"Damyan?" Arthur chewed his lip. "If I'm being chased by Carriedo and you had a run-in with Francis, that leaves-"

"Gilbert." Matthew's voice was soft. "And since you sent Damyan and Nicolae to protect our remote, it only means that Gilbert's pretty close to eliminating us."

"Not if I can help it. You said that Kumajirou was looking for their remote, right?" Matthew nodded. "Did you manage to lead Francis out of the kitchen?"

"Why do you think I'm out here on the hallway?" Matthew smiled. "But yes, yes I did."

"Good. I guess all we can do now is take out the both of them or at least keep them distracted as your little pet looks for the remote."

"Sounds like a plan."

'

Damyan quickly led Lovino to a corner of the room as the other two fought. Both of which were throwing everything they could find at each other, whether it be notebooks, pencil cases, erasers, and even pieces of paper (neither of them used pencils, probably because that meant that they had to actually open the pencil cases). They had the good sense not to throw it at each other's faces, but even then it looked as if it would hurt.

"How in the world is Nicolae hiding in here?" Lovino whispered to Damyan as they both watched the other two fight.

"Nicolae's pretty good at staying hidden. While he's not as good as Matthew when it comes to hiding in plain sight, he's not too bad at it."

"But where is he hiding?" To anyone else, it would appear as if Nicolae wasn't in the room at all. However, years of being with him had caused Damyan to know the telltale signs of where Nicolae was.

"You'll see."

An eraser whizzed by Gilbert's arm. "Ha! With that aim of yours, you'll never hit me!" He smashed up a piece of paper and threw it at Alfred, who was standing on the side near the windows.

"Paper? Is that all you got?" Alfred chucked another eraser. "You're going soft Gilbert."

Gilbert cackled, grabbing a notebook nearby. He was right next to the cluster of desks near the door. He opened it and crumpled another piece of paper. "Kid, you don't know how much damage paper can do."

"The classroom's going to be a mess when they're done." Damyan sighed. "If only I hadn't been captured. It really sucks when you are."

"Wow, really?" Lovino rolled his eyes. "I don't mind being out of the game, but…"

Gilbert took out a hanger he somehow had with him. He used it to deflect some of Alfred's throw as he used his other hand to throw stuff at him.

"No fair, where'd you get the hanger? Oh well, doesn't matter." Alfred whipped out the water pistols he had with him and started to shoot.

"Oh dear," Damyan chuckled. "I feel bad for the janitor. Almost everyone uses water guns and it's a pain to mop them up."

"I wonder how you're so calm at times like this. I'm terrified right now." He shrugged at Lovino's words.

"I'm childhood friends with _Nicolae_. You don't know terrifying until you've seen the things he's into."

It went on like that for a while, Alfred shooting out water and Gilbert opening the door and using it as cover while chucking random items at the other.

"Kesese," he laughed as the water in either one of Alfred's water guns ran out. "Is that all you got, Jo-?"

The red cloth on Gilbert's arm suddenly fell to the ground with a small 'fwip'. Gilbert was as still as stone as he turned to the person behind him.

"Ivan."

At those words, the air in the room immediately became cold. Everyone didn't move as the Russian representative smiled sweetly at the other. "Ah, you two seem like you're having fun. That is good, da?"

He walked forward to the cluster of desks and plunged his hand in the middle of it. When he brought it back up, he was holding Nicolae by the back of his collar. "I see Nicolae is still up to his tricks."

"Ugh, Ivan…" Nicolae squirmed until the other let go of him. Ivan shrugged and reached inside one of the desks in the cluster, managing to fish out a remote. The remote was slim and gray with only a red button on it and a green bulb on its front.

"Ivan…" Alfred didn't dare attack. Not while the other still had their team's remote. "Place the remote down."

"I don't see why I should." He was still smiling. "Especially since you ran away earlier when we could've fought."

"Yeah, well…" Alfred not-so-subtly glanced at Lovino, who just gave him a dirty look.

"Oi…" Gilbert was looking at the remote in Ivan's hands. "I hate to ask this of you, but do you mind pressing that button?"

"Hm? How come?" His eyes traveled over to Nicolae and Alfred. "Sure it's their remote, but I don't see why I should."

"Come on, it's an opposing team's remote. You _have_ to push it."

"Not necessarily." He tilted his head. "I could just walk away and leave this remote be."

"Ivan…" Gilbert took in a deep breath. "If you push that remote… then I'll spend a day with you…" It was obvious that Gilbert was forcing himself to get the words out. "Deal?"

Ivan pondered the deal for a moment. "All right." He turned to Nicolae. "It seems you managed to keep your end of the agreement."

"What is he talking about?" Nicolae looked sheepishly at the Prussian.

"I, err… sorta promised him that I would help him get you agree to hang out with him for a while if I could be on Arthur's team…" Gilbert glared at him.

"You're dead."

Ivan pushed the button.

'

"Francis, what happened to you?"

Francis turned to Antonio with a small smile, ignoring how his soaked clothes clung to him. "I've been trying to keep Matthew away from our remote. By the way, what are you doing here?"

"Lost Kirkland and I'm trying to find him." He looked at the kitchen door ahead. "So Matthew found the whereabouts of our remote, huh? And here I thought nobody would even bother to go near the kitchen."

"Luck cannot always be by our side." Francis shrugged. "Sounds like Gilbert's having a field day," he observed, remembering the announcement that came up a while ago stating that Damyan had been captured.

"Tell me about it." Antonio suddenly narrowed his eyes. "Well, look who the cat dragged in."

Francis turned around to see Arthur and Matthew standing a good distance away. "My… This is an interesting turn of events."

Francis and Matthew whipped out their water guns a second after Francis finished his sentence. Meanwhile, Arthur and Antonio had closed in on each other rather quickly, whipping out their daggers as fast as they could. Without a word, the fight started. Antonio and Arthur started their dagger fight as Matthew and Francis started shooting at each other.

"Kirkland, if you could just-!" Antonio dodged to the side as Arthur almost jabbed him in the gut. "Tell me where Lovino is and then I'll leave you alone!"

"Like I know where he is!" He moved away as Francis aimed a shot at him. "I left him off with Alfred!"

"Then get out of the way!"

Antonio charged forward with his dagger. Arthur managed to block it with his own, but then Antonio twisted his weapon so that Arthur lost his grip on his dagger. His dagger fell to the floor with a 'thump' as Arthur fell back when Francis shot his foot. Antonio leaned over him, his dagger pointed at his chest, keeping the other on the ground.

"Well, it seems that this battle has ende-"

"Not quite."

Francis turned to see Matthew standing near the door of the kitchen, Kumajirou at his feet. More importantly, he was holding the-

"It really was faster than I thought."

He pushed the button.

'''''

"Calm down, it's not the end of the world."

Lovino lay on his bed, too lazy to change out of his clothes. They had returned home pretty late after the game ended, and even though he didn't really take part, it was pretty tiring. However…

"But Lovi, a tie means that Arthur has beaten me two times to one!"

_He must be pretty frustrated to use his first name. _The only time Lovino could remember Antonio using Arthur's name was when he first pointed out the other to him when he was still his guide, and even then it was probably because Lovino would have found it odd if Antonio had used his last name when talking about him.

"I don't know why you're so upset about this; it's just a one-point difference."

"Still, for both our teams to lose at the same time… What are the odds of that…?" Lovino could imagine the other pouting on the other end of the phone. "But I still can't believe that I couldn't find you in the end. You were a damsel in distress, and I couldn't save you."

"'Damsel in distress'? Last time I checked, I wasn't wearing a dress today."

"Pity. You look very beautiful in a dress."

There was some noise on the other side. "Sorry Lovi, but I have to go. My mom's telling me to keep it down and that basically means 'stop using the phone'."

"Yeah, yeah, ok." Lovino heard a faint cry of 'fratello!'. "Well, that's my brother telling me that dinner's ready, so I'll talk to you later."

"Alright."

Lovino hung up. It wasn't until he had left his room did he realize that something was off. _Wait a minute…_

_When has Antonio ever seen me in a dress?_

* * *

><p><em>I seriously apologize for not uploading for a month and then uploading a bad battle. I tried, but… Sigh, oh well, I hope that this will suffice. I sort of rushed it since I was in a hurry to start writing the new chapter for a story for FictionPress, but I tried nonetheless. By the way, there's no poem because 1) I couldn't think of one 2) this is the second part of the last chapter, so there already was a poem. Anyways, I hope this wasn't too bad and sorry again!<em>


	13. A Birthday To Remember

_Surprised? For those who don't check my profile, I had gone on a little hiatus. However, the fact that I'm uploading should mean that I'm back in my game, if only by a little! It's going to take a while for me to readjust back to this, so expect some OOC moments... Sorry for its shortness, I'm still trying to get used to things! So without further ado, here's the new chapter of TP!_

_**P.S.**__There's not much left to this story actually. I apologize for doing this to you guys _right _after I got back, but that was what had been planned..._

* * *

><p>"<em>Fratello<em>, I don't know why you're worrying over this so much," Feliciano said as he hugged his teddy bear. They were on Lovino's bed, both of them cross-legged and facing each other. Both were wearing navy blue plaid pajamas, the windows dark as they gave a view of the night sky. "Big Brother Antonio probably hadn't meant anything when he had said that you looked beautiful in a dress."

"Doesn't that imply that he's seen me in a dress though?" Lovino pointed out. Even though some time had passed since the event, he was still bothered by Antonio's comment that Lovino looked beautiful in a dress. It wasn't the kind of thing to freak out over, but something kept nagging at the back of his head...

Feliciano tilted his head in thought. "I suppose so, but I don't see why this is bothering you so much. You probably wore a dress once around him and didn't remember it. That happens to me all the time, not remembering the stuff I do."

"That's because it's you." Lovino sighed. Normally he would talk to Arthur or Nicolae or any one of his friends, but they were all busy. After the event, Lovino had come to several realizations: one, the Bad Touch Trio earned their nickname for a reason; two, he should have seen this coming, especially with the lackluster ending of the event; and three, his school was insane.

Ever since the event some time ago, Antonio and his crew had been playing a variety of tricks on Arthur and his crew, their tricks ranging from thrown erasers to random spam mail being sent to them. Somehow it had escalated into an underground school war, the original cause having been lost as a great number of students started to "battle" (which is to say, play pranks on each other as well). Lovino was part of the few that wanted absolutely _no _part of their shenanigans, but seeing as how he was close to the two people that started this mess in the first place...

Lovino sighed again. Suffice to say, all his friends were too busy to listen to Lovino, so he had settled to just talk to his brother, who seemed oblivious to any and all going-ons in the school.

Feliciano continued to smile. "Just stop worrying about it, okay? There are other things to worry about at the moment." Before Lovino could question him on this (could it be that Feliciano was actually aware of what was currently happening in the school?), something rang. Feliciano looked down and took out his phone from his pants' pocket. He opened it and after a while he smiled, his fingers flying as he hastily typed something back to whoever had presumably texted him. He looked back up at Lovino. "Like the school wars for instance. Oh, and you know that eraser I lost? Apparently, Gilbert's pet bird has been found stealing erasers from certain students lately. It's not a good thing, having your eraser stolen." He pocketed his phone and beamed at Lovino. "Oh well, at least I can have my pasta-shaped eraser back now!"

It took a while before Lovino could get over his shock to answer. "How'd you know that? And who texted you?" Feliciano tilted his head once again.

"Why, Ludwig did of course! I mean, it's normal for me to know what my boyfriend's brother is doing, especially since said brother is Gilbert!"

"_What?!"_ Lovino abruptly stood up, wobbling slightly as he caught his balance on the bed's soft covers. "Since when did you guys start dating?!" The other tilted his head.

"Since before that time we went to the amusement park. I thought it was common knowledge."

"Not to me!" Lovino put a hand on his forehead. "Fucking hell Feli, don't do this to me..."

"Don't do what to you?"

Lovino just shook his head in response. "I need a fucking drink."

"Would you like a glass of water?"

"I meant it figuratively!" He snapped. "How come I never knew about it?!"

"Well, all you've really been focusing on lately has been Antonio..." Lovino blushed at Feliciano's blunt reply. "I mean, do you even remember that your birthday is coming up?"

"Of course I do! It's just with recent events that I haven't really been focusing much on it..." Lovino mumbled. "Bottom line is, I don't approve of him."

"But Ludwig's such a great person!" A jolt went through Lovino as Feliciano looked at him with round eyes. "You just need to spend more time with him, that's all! I'm sure that _fratello_ will like him once he gets to know him a lot more!"

He snorted. "In your dreams, I barely like the other brother."

"I'm not going to force you to like him, but uh... Ve..." Feliciano mumbled something under his breath. "...Sort of invited him to your birthday party..."

"What was that?!" He glared at Feliciano, who cowered. "Why in the world would you do such an idiotic thing as that?!"

"Ve... It's because _nonno _wants to meet him and I thought that I'd be killing two birds with one stone because then you'd get to meet him as well!" He answered quickly, scooting a bit out of the way. "I swear I didn't mean any harm, but please _fratello_, can you just meet him and be nice to him and learn how terrific of a guy he is...?"

"No." Lovino sat back down, still glaring at his brother. "Honestly, I don't trust that potato bastard. No offense Feli, but you're not exactly the paragon of masculinity. What will you do if he does something to you?"

"He wouldn't do that! Ludwig isn't that kind of person!" He met Feliciano's determined eyes. After a while, Lovino sighed.

"Well, if it has been going on since the amusement park and he hasn't done anything to you since then, I suppose that I can _try_ to tolerate him..." Feliciano clapped in happiness but stopped when Lovino glared at him again. "Just as long as I don't have any other unwanted visitors coming to the birthday party you've apparently planned for me."

Feliciano chuckled weakly. "About that, _fratello, _I-" Before he could finish his sentence, their grandfather barged in their room.

"What are you boys still doing up?" Romulus scolded. "It's time for bed!"

Both teens nodded, although it was hard to miss that Feliciano had on a _very _relieved expression.

''''''

"You don't have to walk me back home you know."

"Lovi, you don't know how dangerous the world has become."

"_You _don't know what I'm capable of." Lovino scowled at the other next to him. "And no one has attacked me yet in this silly school war of yours, so I don't see why I should have to worry."

"That's because I make sure that none of them get to you." Lovino flushed but he maintained his scowl.

"Overprotective bastard, none of the pranks that have been played have been particularly dangerous... Just extremely stupid. I mean, is a pink sock taped to your locker really that distressing?"

Antonio looked like he was about to say something but had changed his mind. "Can't you just let me have an excuse to walk with you? Especially on such a nice day like this."

"I don't see why you need an excuse in the first place." The other grinned at Lovino's rather vague answer. "Honestly, you already spend almost every waking moment with me. Do you really have to walk me home as well?"

"You've never complained whenever I walked with you before." His grin had changed in a small pout. "And I like spending as much time as I can with you."

"You're ridiculous..." Lovino shook his head, trying to suppress a laugh. A thought came into his mind. "Hey... Did you know that Ludwig and Feliciano were dating?"

"I thought that was common knowledge," Antonio answered immediately. Lovino groaned.

"Great. This is just great. If those two ever get married, that would make Gilbert my brother-in-law, and nobody wants _that._"

"He's not _that _bad, Gilbert... Just very eccentric."

"Eccentric my ass, he's batshit insane."

Antonio let out a loud laugh. "Can't argue with that." There was a short pause. "If it means anything though, that would make him my brother-in-law as well."

Lovino stopped in his tracks. "What do you mean by tha-?"

"Oh hey, I haven't seen that before!"

Lovino turned his eyes to where Antonio was pointing. Before he had realized it, they were already back at the mansion. From where he was, he could see Feliciano, Niccolo, and Romulus crowded around a blue Ferrari, but...

"No." He took a step back. "Nonononononononono..."

"Lovino, is something wrong?" He could barely hear Antonio's concerned voice. Dread filled his gut as he saw Feliciano look at him and wave, later gesturing for the others to follow him as they made their way to Lovino. "Hey, is that-?"

"Feliciano, what the fuck is she doing here?" Lovino snapped as they came closer. Feliciano cowered slightly.

"Lovino, watch your language," his mother all but demanded. The air around the two tensed, and it was like the only two people there were Lovino and his mother. Her skin was the same color as Lovino's, and both her hair and eye color were the same as Lovino's. She even had the same hair curl as him. His mother was like an older, female Lovino and at the moment Lovino wished it wasn't so. She looked tired, but there was a sort of hardened energy in her eyes. It was as if she had been anticipating this moment and preparing for it. "As for why I'm here, your brother had called me today to celebrate your birthday. He thought that it was high time we interacted with each other, since you seem keen to avoid any and all calls I try to make to you."

"Feliciano..." The other cowered behind Romulus. Lovino turned back to his mother. "So you're here," his voice was curt. "Where's Dad then?"

His mother hesitated. "Lovino... Your father, he-"

"Couldn't make it? Or just couldn't handle being around you?"

"Lovino!" He ignored his grandfather.

"Well?" He glared at his mother.

"He couldn't make it. He had work issues."

"Likely." Lovino scoffed derisively but didn't press on the matter. He was more concerned with the growing apprehension he was feeling as something popped up in his head. "Dad aside, have you guys made a decision yet?"

It took only a second for his mother to stop looking stunned. "Yes, and we both thought it was wise if I was the one to tell you what we de-"

"Oh, so that's it then?" Something gripped Lovino's chest hard as his fears had been realized. "So we really are going to go through with your idea then? Well that's just fucking brilliant, now isn't it?"

What looked like hurt flashed briefly in her expression and she wavered slightly. "Lovino, when I had proposed the idea, I had only wanted the best for all of you... It would have caused a big change in our lives, I know, but I never meant for it to turn out this way. I didn't think-"

"You didn't think it would lead to this, huh?" Lovino spat bitterly. "You didn't think that your little 'idea' could do this much damage? I don't care what you thought; it was a bad idea from the start. You could have let it die down, but instead, you angered Dad and the rest of us while you were at it. And don't pull any of that 'I had no choice' bullshit either. You had one and you had all this time to go back on it, but by the looks of it, you didn't."

"Actually, it was really just-a you who had gotten angry in the-a first pla..." Niccolo's voice died down as Romulus gave him a stern glare.

"Not helping."

"Lovino, I don't understand." Even though his mother was trying to keep calm and patient, Lovino could see a trace amount of exasperation in her expression and flared up. "You were the one who was the unhappiest. I would have thought that you were going to be the one who would have supported me the most."

"You thought wrong then. And don't bother telling me what you guys had decided. In the end, it doesn't matter. In fact, I don't really care anymore what you guys decided."

"What?" While many had spoken, Lovino only heard his mother's exclamation. She looked puzzled. "Then why are you still acting like this if it truly does not matter anymore?"

"Why don't you guys figure it out for yourselves?" He spun on his heels, his back against them. "Thanks for ruining my birthday Catarina."

Lovino ran, ignoring the mixture of angry and alarmed calls behind him. He kept running, his eyes trained on the ground. He didn't know how long he had ran, but after a while, he stopped to catch his breath. Lovino put his hands on his knees, ragged breaths escaping him as he took one arm to wipe away the tears that had somehow sprung up on his eyes.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid... _He hadn't the heart to swear at the moment. _Why'd Feliciano have to go ahead and be an idiot and invite her? On my birthday as well? _He let out a ragged gasp. _But there's no turning back now. They've made their decision... Not that it would have mattered much. We couldn't stay here forever. _He let out a low and bitter chuckle. _Guess I'm going to have to say good-bye to Nicolae and the others. Pity, maybe I could have helped them a little in these school wars, get that potato bastard and his brother back just 'cause... _A realization hit Lovino like a train. _Wait, doesn't that mean that-?!_

"Lovi!"

Lovino spun around to see Antonio running up to him, the latter slowing to a stop as he made it to him. "Man, you run fast..." He said as he put a hand on his chest to catch his breath.

"Antonio, what are you doing here?" Of all the people Lovino wanted to see at the moment, Antonio hadn't been one of them. The other looked momentarily stunned at the loss of his nickname as well as Lovino's brusque tone.

"Lovi, what happened back there? That isn't any way to treat your mother."

"What do you care?" Lovino looked away. "It's none of your business, so stay out of it."

"Anything that upsets you upsets me too."

"Then you should be upset at yourself at the moment."

"Lovi..." He didn't struggle as Antonio grabbed his arm and gently turned him so that he was facing him. "What's the matter? What was with that whole exchange back there?"

"I..." Lovino bit his lip. Could he really tell Antonio everything? The only time it had been brought up between them was when they had first met, but he hadn't told him then because they had been complete strangers. Now, Antonio was the closest person to him, and yet... "I-it's nothing."

"Do you really distrust me that much?" Lovino flinched at Antonio's harsh and hurt tone. "Lovi, you can tell me anything that goes on. Even if you don't, I'll keep pestering you or Feli until one of you gives in."

"You wouldn't. Don't even answer to that." Lovino sighed. Out of reflex he had answered back that way, but he knew that Antonio had meant his words. "Persistent bastard... Fine, have it your way."

"It's nothing much really. It's just... My mom had been offered a new job, but the problem was that it was in another country. Her job was good already, and we liked it at our old place... Well, they did." He let out another bitter chuckle. "You heard her. I didn't much like it there. Always being overshadowed by Feliciano, being friendless..." He shook his head. "Either way, I wasn't exactly the happiest person there, but I had never wanted to move away. I don't really understand it much myself, but I knew that I just couldn't move away... You see, I..." He bit his lip again. "Anyways, she tried to convince my dad, but it didn't turn out well. My mom, she can be really persistent, and it sort of got on my dad's nerves eventually and..." Lovino took another breath. "Bottom line is, she brought us here so that they could argue in peace, so that I wouldn't be there arguing with my dad. Appearances aren't the only thing that my mom and I share, we're both... When we're properly agitated, we become pretty unreasonable and it can go on for quite a while and..." His sentences became much feebler as he lost his resolve. "So we were brought here to avoid all that."

Neither of them said anything for a while after Lovino's explanation. Finally, Antonio took a deep breath. "So that's why you suddenly moved back here. But what was with that whole 'have you made your decision yet' business thing about? Why were you losing yourself over it?"

"Because whether or not they decided to move out or not, it wouldn't matter..." Lovino's voice was weak and quiet. It was as if saying it out loud would cement that fact. "No matter what, I wouldn't be staying here for much longer..."

Lovino didn't need to look up to see Antonio freeze. "What do you mean...?"

"It's just what I fucking meant!" He looked up at the other's face angrily. "I just told you, didn't I!? Our stay here was only temporary! We were only supposed to stay here for as long as it took for them to sort out their decisions! For any other family, that would be a short time, but it's different for us! These kinds of things take long for us, but now that their decision has been made, we're moving out!"

"But you hadn't heard the decision!" It pained Lovino to see such a panicked expression on Antonio's normally cheery face. "You left before she could say it! Maybe you guys aren't moving out of the countr-!"

"Does it really matter what decision they made!?" Lovino intervened, his fists clenched at his sides. "It had always been whether or not we stayed in our old place or move out of the country! Living here was never an option, just a place to shunt us to the side while the grown-ups handled all the decision-making! I'm leaving and there's nothing that could change that!" He unclenched his fists, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "And that means that I won't ever see you again."

The silence that had ensued afterwards was unbearable. There have been many silences in Lovino's life, but this one seemed like the one most prolonged. It could have been hours, minutes, seconds, generations... Lovino screwed his eyes shut. _Please let it come to an end already..._

"But that's... I still haven't..." At the sound of Antonio's voice, Lovino opened his eyes. He regretted it immediately. He had on an expression that was akin to that of a person who just experienced the most despair-inducing event of their life. An expression that was the very picture of despair... Lovino couldn't handle seeing it on someone like Antonio. "We can still make this work, I know we can..."

Lovino smiled dryly. "We lived pretty far away from here. Would you really be satisfied with a long-distance relationship? I know that we could make it work somehow, but would it really make any difference?"

"I could convince my family to move there... Or move there myself once I'm old enough, it's not that far away... Lovi, all you need is a little faith..."

Lovino shook his head. "By the looks of it, I'm moving out of the country. Who knows how long we'll have to wait until we can see each other by then? We could have moved on by that time."

"Don't say that!" Antonio replied fiercely. "Lovi, have a little faith, will you? We _can _make this work, it just takes a little effort-"

"Antonio, stop." Lovino looked down. "I'm not a long-distance relationship kind of person. I've never believed that people can actually have such bonds without them being physically _there. _As much as I love you, I don't know if we can truly handle it..."

Another silence followed. After a while, Antonio took a deep breath. "It's getting late." He looked back at the way they came. "We should head back. It's a good thing you only went straight. If you had taken any turns, that would have complicated things for us."

"Toni..." Lovino felt miserable.

"I'll part ways with you here. We're pretty close to my house actually, so it's best if I go from here." He looked back at Lovino and smiled, but it wasn't like any of his normal smile. Not even in the slightest. "I forgot, Happy Birthday Lovino."

Lovino could only stand and watch as Antonio left without another word. It was only after he was long gone did Lovino realize that he hadn't said a poem to him at all.


	14. A Poem Plus A Tomato

_This is the last chapter of Tomato Poetry! I'm sorry for putting you all through my (highly) erratic schedule, especially since I had a rather long hiatus and am currently taking a rather long time to write anything. I'm really happy that despite the long breaks you guys stuck around for this story. In a way, I'm sort of sad that this story is ending. It was one of the first fics I wrote and well, there's a special kind of attachment I have with this story. At the same time, I'm really glad that I managed to finish this. It's been fun and again, thank you all for reading this and sticking through to the end._

_Without further ado, let's finish this!_

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry Ludwig, I didn't think that this would happen..."<p>

"It's fine; I occasionally have family troubles as well."

Both teens were a little ways away from Lovino's room, having unsuccessfully tried to get the latter to talk to them. He had returned to the mansion before the sky completely darkened without Antonio and hadn't even looked at any of them as he marched up to his room. Feliciano fidgeted, wondering what had happened to get his brother so dispirited. "Well yes, but I'd wish that you weren't here when they had argued... Even though you were in the house, I wish fratello was in a good mood. Then he could've met you properly and approved you... Right now though, I wish I just knew what was wrong... I mean-"

"Yo." Gilbert walked up to them before Feliciano could continue his ramblings. Even though Feliciano had only invited Ludwig to his brother's party, Gilbert had somehow gotten it in his head that he had been invited by extension. At the moment, he was holding his phone in one hand. "I tried to call Antonio, but he's not picking up. It's not _that _strange that he wouldn't, but whenever I mention Lovino in my voice messages, he would usually pick up sometime soon, ask what's wrong, and then get pissed at me when the call has nothing to do with Lovino."

"Did they have a falling-out?" Ludwig, who was used to his brother's weirdness, was unfazed by the other's unnecessary commentary and ignored it. "Is that why they are both unresponsive?"

"Trouble in paradise?" Gilbert said incredulously. "Like hell Antonio would let that happen. He's an idiot, but he likes to fix things as fast as he could. Still..." His face turned uncharacteristically serious. "It's not like him to be like this. Are you sure that you can't ask that brother of yours what in the world is going on?"

"Lovino won't even leave his room..." Feliciano looked over anxiously at his brother's door. "I'll try again, but I think it might be best if you guys aren't here. He didn't exactly want either of you to come..."

Ludwig dragged his brother away before he could even start on a response of indignation. Feeling a rush of warmth towards the German, Feliciano took a deep breath and headed for his brother's room.

'''''

"What was that for West?" Gilbert demanded once his brother let him go.

"We have no right to invade in their family matters!"

"Bullshit, this concerns one of my best friends' boyfriend." Without waiting for an answer from his brother, Gilbert marched back the way he came. "Are you coming or not?"

Ludwig looked hesitant. "Gilbert, I don't think that we should-"

"I'll take that as a no." The rest of the way was silent, Gilbert not looking back to see if his brother had followed him or not. He hid in the corner before the hallway, peeking out to see Feliciano in front of Lovino's door.

"Fratello?" He heard Feliciano call out as he rapped on his brother's door twice. "Are you okay?"

"What do you think?"

"Ve..." Feliciano frowned at his sharp response. "Won't you tell me what's going on?"

No response.

Footsteps sounded behind Gilbert. "Bruder, I really think that-"

"Quiet West!" Gilbert grinned despite his reprimand. He knew that his brother would come. "He might spill the beans!"

"What in the world makes you think that?!" The other said in a low hiss.

"Just trust me!"

"Lovino?" They both shut up at the sound of Feliciano's voice, the Italian's voice getting increasingly worried as he rapped on his brother's door. "Lovino, please tell me what's going on! I want to help!"

A pause. And then: "...may have..."

"May have what?"

While Gilbert was surprised to have even heard Lovino at all considering how far away from his door he was, this time he could hardly make out the mumbling sounds Lovino was probably making as he replied. However, that was what Feliciano was for. "Ve?! You did what?!"

"Shut up Feli!" Lovino's voice came out loud and clear this time, sounding both guilty and angry at the same time. "It just... it just sort of happened!"

"Yes but..." Gilbert saw Feliciano fidget, the sunny Italian's expression troubled. "But did you _really_...?"

"Yes!" This time, Lovino sounded absolutely wretched. "Yes I may have broken up with Antonio! Is it really that hard to believe?!" Something banged on Lovino's end of the door. Judging by Feliciano's expression, Lovino had said something in a quiet voice.

"You're not stupid fratello, it's just..." Feliciano searched for the right word. "Why?"

A pause. Gilbert figured that Lovino was saying something. "But a long-distance relationship can work!" Feliciano argued.

"What about that potato bastard of yours then?" Lovino's voice was loud and harsh. "Do you think that it could really work like that?"

"Y... yes!" Even though he had faltered, Feliciano remained resolute. "I believe it can!"

"That's enough." Gilbert had to suppress a noise of surprise as his brother dragged him farther away from the two Italians.

"Hey wait a second, I could've heard the kid's answer!"

Ludwig stopped to glare at him. "We shouldn't have been listening in the first place!"

"You're just saying that 'cause of what Feli said!" Gilbert grinned at his brother's flushed face before frowning. "But man, did they actually break up...? I knew that Lovino was high-maintenance, but still..." He trailed off, thoughts bouncing off in his head. "Huh. Can't believe they're moving out... I got used to having them around too. I'll sure miss cute little Feli, that's for sure, but even Antonio's little pet had grown on me... Them moving would really suck."

"If they're moving, then they're moving." Ludwig's face fell a little. "That's all there is to it."

There was a brief silence as the recent events started to sink in. Finally, Gilbert let out a large groan. "What are we doing, just standing around here and moping? We're too awesome for such lame acts as that! If I don't do something, I don't deserve my status!" He took out his phone, ignoring his brother looking at him like he was crazy.

"What are you doing?"

"Making a few calls," Gilbert replied. "Looks like this school war is going to have to wait."

Ludwig still looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Yo Nicolae!" Gilbert said the moment he heard the sound that signified that someone on the other end had picked up. "You know that mess you got me into with Ivan? That promise that you sure as hell you have to pay for? Well," he grinned. "It's time to pay up."

'''''

"You're kidding me?!"

Nicolae could only gape as Gilbert nodded his head. The Prussian had called Nicolae and had demanded that he gather all of his little friends and meet in front of the school. Of course Nicolae had protested since it was pretty late already, but from the sounds of it, the situation was pretty serious. That, and Nicolae had the funny feeling that Gilbert would have dragged him to the school if he hadn't agreed. So here they all were, possibly trespassing into school grounds after hours with six cranky teens in their pajamas and two German brothers, one borderline psychotic the other his polar opposite. They were all standing in a somewhat small circle, Gilbert having just explained why he had gathered them all there.

"Gilbert, this is hardly the time for one of you jokes..." Even though Francis sounded annoyed at having been disturbed from his beauty rest, he had this look about him that despite what he had said, he had believed Gilbert. The other turned to him, his expression serious.

"Nah, I even called him and everything and he's not picking up no matter how many times I mention Lovino. Plus, I heard it from the kid himself..." He grinned, but it was only a shadow of his normal one. "Eavesdropped actually, but specifics aren't the point here."

"A-are you s-shuaaaaaaaa?" Alfred let out a big yawn during his question, turning sharply to Gilbert once he was done. "I mean, it's really hard to believe that they'd actually _break up_..."

"Unfortunately, it's true." Ludwig was frowning. "As much as I had protested against eavesdropping, we _had _heard Lovino tell Feliciano that they had broken up."

"But that's just..." Damyan was shaking his head. "Antonio's crazy for Lovino, and we all know the feeling's mutual! High school couples don't exactly last long, but they were practically married in all but name!"

"Which is why I have gathered you all here today." Gilbert spread out his arms. "Look, Antonio's one of my best buddies. I haven't known the crazy bastard as long as Francis had, but us three, we're practically brothers. Not like you aren't my brother too West," he added to Ludwig, who hadn't even opened his mouth. "But anyways, I don't want the relationship Antonio tried so hard to build crumble because of one setback. Antonio's had his fair share of pets before, but Lovino's the only one he's actually _serious_ about, and I don't want that to break 'cause of something as trivial as this. It might be a long shot to try to prevent them from moving out of town, but we should at least try to find a way to keep this relationship alive. Like Damyan said, those two are pretty much meant for each other, and distance be damned, their relationship _can _survive the distance, we just need to find a way to tell Lovino that." He swept his eyes throughout the teens gathered. "So who's with me?"

"You know," Nicolae said, his eyebrow raised. "You didn't have to bring up the Ivan deal to get me to agree to this; I would have done it even without you telling me that I needed to repay you. By the way, how did it go?"

"Peachy," Gilbert snapped. "So can you answer the question? We need to act fast if we're going to do something."

"I said yes didn't I?" Nicolae replied, his reply just as curt as Gilbert's had been. He turned to Damyan. "What do you say?"

The other scoffed. "Did you really need to ask?"

"Yeah, it's a really stupid question Nicolae," Alfred piped up. "All of us here are friends with the people in question- minus Ludwig but he's with Feliciano so he counts- so naturally we'd help them, hero or not! We're all in this together, right?" Everyone nodded. Alfred beamed. "So that's that!"

"What _are _we supposed to do though?" Arthur asked. "It's all fine to rally up the troops and give us a resolve, but we also need a method. If you haven't realized, Lovino's rather stubborn; heaven knows how long it took for him to realize that he was actually in love with Carriedo. How exactly are we supposed to convince him that he can have a working long-distance relationship?" He glanced at Francis, who shrugged.

"That's something I believe only Antonio can do."

"Then what are we to do..." Damyan asked. "...If we can't tackle the main problem?"

"Work at another angle." Matthew's voice was quiet, but everyone turned to him nonetheless. "It might be a long shot, but I think I may have an idea."

'''''

Lovino covered his eyes with his arm as he stared blankly up at the ceiling. Even though he had slept much more than he normally did, he still had no energy to do anything else. Or rather, he didn't want to get up. It was like staying at his bed could postpone anything that was supposed to happen, that even though the sun was shining brightly through his window, staying bed magically makes time stay at night. That he still had time to lie down and rest before getting up and facing what the day held.

_What... Just what the fuck am I doing?_ Lovino laughed bitterly as he looked through the window, painfully recalling the time he had first met Antonio. "I'm going insane."

He turned to his side, his body aching from staying in bed for too long. _Please tell me that yesterday was a dream and that when... _if_ I even get up, everything will be back to normal._ However, something in the back of his mind wouldn't let him forget what an awful thing he had done to Antonio. _Why? Why did it have to be me?_ He turned to the other side. _He's the perfect one, he's the one with the fortified resolve... Me, I'm just the one nobody wants, the one that pushes away what can hold together because of a lack of faith..._

Groaning, Lovino turned yet again so that he was lying on the bed with his face buried in his pillows. _But what am I supposed to do about it? We're moving away and I can't do anything to change that. I won't see Antonio again and worse yet because of my retarded speech yesterday, I can't even chance a long-distance relationship._

_ Way to go Lovino, way to go._

Someone knocking on his door prevented Lovino from dwelling even further into his depressed thoughts. Lovino groaned again and lifted up his head to let out a "GET LOST!" before plopping back into his pillow.

"But Lovino~!" Lovino groaned again. _Dammit, why'd it have to be Feliciano of all people?_

"Fine, come in if you feel like it!" What sounded suspiciously like a delighted clap was heard before Lovino heard his door opening. "What are you doing here Feliciano? Can't you see that I'm trying to be a sulky little shit?"

"Lovino, you really should watch your language." He felt something sit at the foot of his bed. "But aren't you planning to even leave this room? You missed breakfast! We couldn't even touch your birthday cake since you weren't there!"

"Feliciano, do you really think that I want to remember my birthday _now_ of all times?"

"Well..." His brother fidgeted, rocking the bed ever so slightly. "Lovino, I know you're upset, but..."

"But what?" Even though his words came out harsh, Lovino didn't have nearly as much energy to even be cross. "And don't try to tell me that things will be okay; I fucked up Feli, you can't just bounce back from that."

"Can't you try talking things out with big brother Antonio?"

"No!" Lovino felt his brother jolt from his vehement exclamation. "After what I said yesterday? I'm probably the last person he wants to look at right now!" He sighed. "I don't even know how he managed to last this long. I'm not exactly the most pleasant person, and I sure as hell am not the easiest person to date. Most people wouldn't even try to befriend me!"

"That's a lie!" Lovino rolled his eyes at his brother's answer. "If you really believed that Lovino, then what do you think Nicolae and the others are? Cannon fodder? Fratello..." He looked to the side to see Feliciano trying to look into his eyes. "They're your friends. They _like _you for who you are, and it's obvious that they do... and the same goes for Antonio, who likes you even more than they do!"

"I don't know about that anymore..." Lovino muttered. "I flat-out told him that our relationship couldn't survive unless he was in my face 24/7." _Which I'm really going to miss now that I think about it. _He let out a sigh. "I might as well have killed the man given his expression."

Feliciano tilted his head. "I don't get it Lovino. Why don't you think a long-distance relationship can work?"

Lovino scoffed, a twinge of bitterness in it. "I just don't. I mean, do those things even work?" He moved so that he was back to facing the ceiling. "Not having the person in your vicinity... Relying on written words to say anything to them... The chances of them liking someone else now that you're not there..." He shuddered. "Really, how does a long-distance relationship even last? Eventually, you'll just forget the other person and move on. The way I see it, there's no way it can work."

"Faith, Lovino, faith. You need faith for a relationship to work, long-distance or not." Feliciano scooted even closer to him. "Take me and Ludwig as an example. I haven't seen him since we were kids- heck, I didn't even know he was the same person!- and yet despite that distance and the fact that we haven't had contact with each other since that time, we still love each other as much as we had back then."

"Feliciano, I really don't need you to bring up that guy right no-" Lovino sat up quickly, surprising his brother as the other's words started registering on Lovino's mind. He turned to face Feliciano, his mind going a mile a minute. "Hang on... Did you just say 'since we were kids'?"

Feliciano, who still looked stunned, now looked confused. "Don't you remember when we came to visit _nonno_ when we were really young? It's been such a long time and my memory's a bit foggy, but we used to play with kids who lived nearby... Really, the only reason I remember was because Elizabata and Roderich told me about it." He tilted his head. "Don't you remember?"

"I barely remember it too, but..." Something popped up on his mind. "H-hey! Weren't we forced into dresses or something?!"

Feliciano's face brightened up. "I remember that! Ish..." He chuckled in a somewhat awkward way. "I didn't mind, but I can't say the same about you..."

"That's not the point." Lovino moved his hand vaguely, his mind on other things. "Do you... Do you remember who had gotten us to wear them?"

His brother put a finger on his chin as he tried to recall their distant childhood. "I think... Now that I think about it, wasn't it Francis and An-"

That was all Lovino needed to hear. Taking his brother by surprise yet again, he jumped out of his bed. "Fratello?!" Lovino paid no heed to Feliciano as he bolted out of his room, one thought filling his mind.

_I have to find Antonio._

'''''

_What am I doing?_

Lovino barely managed to leave his house before he realized that he had never asked Antonio where he had lived. _Fuck, what am I supposed to do...? _He felt like smashing his head on a wall. _Now that I think about it, I've never been to Antonio's house nor have I even thought about it... He usually meets me up at my house or at school, so..._He groaned and slapped his forehead. _I'm such an idiot._

"Lovino!" He looked back to see his brother Niccolo running up to him. "What are you-a doing? I saw you dash out, and I was-a worried since you haven't been the same since-a yesterday."

"Niccolo, why am I such an idiot?" The other looked at him quizzically.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm trying to find Antonio," Lovino explained. "But I just realize that I have no idea where he even lives."

"After all this time you never even-a thought to have asked where your boyfriend lived?" Lovino glared at the other for his disbelief. "But I don't-a get it. Your-a room has a window, yes?"

He rolled his eyes. "Gee Niccolo, I never noticed."

"No, what I-a mean to say is that Antonio's been standing outside the-a tomato gardens since dawn." Lovino could only gape at his youngest brother, who continued on casually. "I was actually looking for-a you since _nonno_ and I were getting-a worried about him. He's been standing there since-a breakfast you know."

"What? Why would he...?" Lovino shook his head. "Well, that makes it easier for me... Thanks Niccolo!" He added before he started to sprint back inside.

"Wait!" Lovino paused and looked back at Niccolo. "I-a don't really know what's going on, but-a..." The other scrunched up his face in thought as if trying to put his thoughts into words. "If Antonio's willing to go this-a far for you, he must care for you a great deal. It would be a waste to-a throw this away, fratello."

Lovino bit his lip and nodded, turning around to sprint back to the place where it all started.

'''''

Lovino walked into the tomato gardens to see Antonio a few feet ahead, his side towards him and what seemed to be a tomato in his hands. A barrage of thoughts attacked Lovino, ranging from "What do I say?", "What should I do?", and "Why am I not surprised?" He was saved from answering when Antonio turned towards him, apparently noticing his presence.

"Hey Lovi," he said with a smile, as if he was merely commentating on the weather. Lovino refrained himself from saying something biting or sarcastic.

"Antonio..." He bit his lip, trying to think of what he could say. "I... You... Why are you here?" He blurted out.

Antonio chuckled, although it was far from his normal laugh. "I believe that once upon a time, I told you via poem that I wanted to be the friend that made you smile. If you really are going to leave-" He paused for the slightest of seconds. "-I'd rather our relationship not end in a bad note if I could help it."

Lovino felt a pang of guilt as he thought back on what he had done. "It's not like I _want _to leave. You know that if I could, I would stay here."

"Would you?" He froze as Antonio looked at him, his eyes piercing. "Would you really?"

"What are you talking about?"

Antonio smiled without actually smiling. "After... After _that _conversation, one just has to wonder, right...?" The normally jovial eyes were pleading. "Lovino, you're not always honest with your feelings. While I'm pretty confident when it comes to knowing your true emotions, I'm not always accurate. You can't exactly fault me for asking after a conversation like that..."

"No, I can't..." Lovino looked down but not before he saw the brief surprised look on Antonio's face. Antonio probably hadn't been expecting Lovino to have agreed with him. "You always were the faithful one..."

"Lovi...?" The Spanish teen's voice was worried, but Lovino didn't stop.

"The romantic one, the unwavering one, the fixer of the relationship... Just look at me." Lovino chuckled bitterly. "I'm the one who wants to break it off just because of one obstacle! Honestly," he added dejectedly. "Why are you going out with me in the first place? There's nothing special or nice about me."

"I go out with you because you're _you_."The other spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Lovino opened his mouth to say something before rethinking.

"You've dated others before though." The words felt acidic in his tongue. "Why are you so fixed with me?" Beat. "Is it because of our shared history?"

He didn't have to look up to see that Antonio was stunned. "How did you...?"

"Feliciano reminded me. To be honest, I had forgotten all about it." He looked up at Antonio. "How come you never told me about it? How come you never told me that that time in the gardens wasn't my first time meeting you?"

Antonio smiled in a sad yet reminiscent way. "In all honesty, I didn't recognize you when I saw you. You've grown a lot you know, in looks... in personality, not so much." This earned a (instinctual) glare from Lovino, which made Antonio smile some more. "But once you told me your name, I knew exactly who you were, although it was obvious to me that you didn't remember me at all. At that time, I decided to hold back on our past since I wasn't sure if you would have believed me if I had told you... Plus, you didn't seem to have liked me that much at that time, so it would have been weird if I had told you about our past."

"What about when we got together? Why didn't you tell me then?"

"I thought that you'd remember it sooner or later given enough time. Guess I wasn't right, huh?" Antonio chuckled a little before taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry I never got to telling you Lovino. I know that I was just putting it off, but I thought that you'd remember eventually... Plus, I wanted to be on better terms with you before you figured it out... But when I figured that you did like me-love me actually- I just got so caught up in that that I pushed it off my mind." He looked straight at Lovino. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Lovino answered immediately. "It's okay, I'm not mad about it, I just... I just had to ask after figuring it out."

Antonio smiled again. For some reason, he looked older than he really was. "The past is actually why I'm who I am right now. A lot of my actions towards you can be seen as overly clingy, and I admit that I was. Last time you were here ten or eleven or so years ago, you stayed for an unbearably short time before having to return back to your home. I tried to date other people, but I could never forget the little Italian boy who I got to dress in a wedding dress." Lovino flushed, the memory returning to him, but let the other continue. "When I realized that you had come back, I had no way of knowing how long you would stay this time, so I decided to befriend you as fast as I could and enjoy the time that I did have with you before you had to leave again..." I guess that's also why I never told you of our past. Our time together was..._is_ what it is-" His tone dropped. "A short, sweet memory."

Lovino didn't know how much time passed after that. Hearing such bittersweet words from someone like Antonio, from someone like him... Something in Lovino seemed to awaken.

"No, our time together is not like that." He took a deep breath before continuing on. "This time, I won't forget you. I never did forget you; even though I didn't remember you when we met up again, some part of me recognized you, or why else would I feel so strongly about you even though you were a complete and utter stranger to me then?" Lovino walked closer to Antonio until he was right next to him. "I take back everything I had said. I don't care if we're apart- nothing will ever change my feelings about you. We can be on the other side of the planet for all I care, we can make it work." Lovino let out a small smile. "I know it."

Normally such cheesy and utterly romantic words would make Lovino cringe, but it felt _right_. And at the moment, he could care less of his embarrassment- the expression on Antonio's face more than made up for whatever embarrassment he had felt.

"Thank you." Antonio's eyes were bright. "So does that mean you'll have faith in me? In us?" Lovino scoffed.

"Did you even listen to a word that I just said?" Antonio laughed.

"You really are cute Lovi... No, not cute. You're too old for cute." Antonio took Lovino's hand and laid the tomato he had been holding in it. He curled Lovino's palm so that it encompassed the tomato. "You've grown into a fine person Lovino, and I can't imagine what my life would be like if I hadn't ever met you."

"I can't either," Lovino said quietly. Antonio smiled, his old self back.

"_I_

_Will_

_Never_

_Forget you._

_Near, far, wherever_

_You are, I will always love you"_

* * *

><p><strong><em>A few days later...<em>**

"It all worked out in the end, didn't it?"

"I'm glad to say that it had. However, it will take a while to get this all sorted out. Moving takes a long time you know, especially when you have to adjust to a new job as well." They were out at the tomato gardens, both standing near the door that lead back inside the mansion. The younger turned to her companion. "Thank you for finding us a job near here though. As always, your influence never ceases to amaze me."

Romulus turned to the younger woman. "You're welcome, but what made you change your mind? It took you a long time to reach that decision, and yet you changed it at the drop of a hat."

Catarina chuckled. "Even a blind man could see that my sons are their happiest here. I must say though, I'm surprised how strong the bonds in this place are. I certainly didn't expect to have my sons' friends come begging to me to let them stay... Moreso when I realized that they were _Lovino_'s friends!" She shook her head in awe. "Seeing others care about my son like that... It would be too cruel for me to tear my sons apart from those they care about. I was worried about how it would all work out, but you seemed to have it all figured out." She eyed her elder. "You knew that we would stay here eventually, didn't you?"

"What do you take me for?" Catarina rolled her eyes as Romulus laughed. "Speaking of which, how are you and Lovino these days?"

"We still don't see exactly eye to eye, but we are doing better than before." She let out an exasperated sigh. "Of course, he still needs work on his manners, but he's less temperamental these days."

"I must say, that boy really does take after you. No matter how harsh either of you two seem, you two will always have a soft center." Romulus smiled. "You even have the same taste in men!"

"I'm still trying to get over that." Catarina shook her head once more. "Lovino... And little Feliciano too! Both after men! Fine men I must say, but it seems like it will fall onto Nicolae to continue the family line...Not that I mind of course. As long as my sons are happy, I am as well." She sighed. "Back on topic, I agree. That boy- Antonio was it?- reminds me of my husband in some ways."

Romulus nodded. "Both have the personality needed to handle stubborn, aggressive folks such as you and Lovino." This earned an affectionate jab from Catarina.

"Hush now, I'm not that aggressive."

"Oh really?" Romulus's eyes were alight. "I'll just have to ask my son that when he comes here in a few days. I'm more than certain that he will agree with me."

"I'm more than certain that he will not."

Romulus laughed. "We'll just have to see."

They stood there for a while, neither feeling awkward about the lull in the conversation that had arose.

"That boy..." Catarina crossed her arms across her chest. "He's the one who takes care of these gardens, if I recall you saying so, which is why he visits here so often."

"Antonio? Yes, although lately he doesn't seem to be doing much of that!" Romulus grinned. "If you're worried about your son, I assure you that Antonio is the perfect match for him."

"I never said that I was worried!" Catarina huffed. "Didn't I just say that Antonio was a fine man? And I didn't raise my son to be a fool! I have full confidence that the man Lovino has chosen is someone that I can agree with. After all, anyone that can open up Lovino's kinder side must be a good person." She paused. "It's just... I wonder how he managed to do that. Open up Lovino I mean." She looked up at Romulus. "After all, Lovino can be a difficult person sometimes."

"Love and patience, my dear, can conquer any barriers." Romulus grinned. "Poetry was also involved, according to what Feliciano told me."

"Poetry?"

"And tomatoes. Plenty of tomatoes"

Catarina chuckled. "Quite a character Antonio seems to be. If you had told me before that Lovino would have fallen for a man like that, I would never have believed you."

"I hardly believe it myself, but it's obvious that those two are meant to be."

Catarina smiled. "It's funny- who could have ever foreseen any of this happening? When I was offered a new job, I never would have thought that it would have led up to all of this!"

"Fate works in mysterious ways, as the saying goes. When you're as old as me, that phrase becomes second nature to you."

"You're not _that _old Romulus. You still have plenty of good years left in you."

"Naturally!" Romulus let out a hearty laugh. "Try as I might though, I cannot escape the fact that I am not who I used to be and that I tend to tire faster nowadays. It saddens me to think that I cannot bear staying out in these gardens for as long as I used to."

"We have stayed here for a considerable amount of time already." Catarina glanced at the darkening sky before going back to open the door for the older man. "Come, we'll continue our conversation indoors."

They entered the mansion, leaving the tomato gardens in silence. The only sounds that could be heard were the gentle swish of the tomato stalks moving with the soft wind.


End file.
